The City Pub Group PLC
(the “City Pub Group”, the “Company” or the “Group”)
INTERIM RESULTS FOR THE 26 WEEK PERIOD ENDING 30 JUNE 2019
Strategic expansion drives sales and EBITDA growth
The City Pub Group is pleased to announce its unaudited results for the 26 weeks ended 30 June 2019. The Group operates a predominately freehold estate of 47 wet-led pubs in London, Southern England and Wales.
Highlights:
— Revenue up 36% to GBP27.1 million (2018: GBP20.0 million)
— Like for like sales increased by 2.6% year on year
— Adjusted EBITDA* up 20% to GBP3.6 million (2018: GBP3.0 million)
— Adjusted profit before tax** up 19% to GBP1.9 million (2018: GBP1.6 million)
* Adjusted earnings before exceptional items, share option charge, interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation.
** Adjusted profit before tax is the profit before tax, share option charge and exceptional items.
— Strategic expansion continued with four pubs opened in 2019. The expanded estate and our wet-led focus resulted in substantial EBITDA and sales growth. Progress has continued into the second half with sales up by 35% over the last eleven weeks.
— With a further four projects in development and a continued focus on the existing estate, the Board expects the Group to continue to deliver significant growth for the foreseeable future.
— The Group is beginning to see the benefits of the new regional management structure and the new Weekly Employee Bonus Scheme, both of which will drive growth and further incentivise the Group's employees.
— Due to political and economic uncertainty the Group will take a much more prudent and even more selective approach to acquisitions and focus instead on completing the development sites for trading, reducing debt and improving the dividend for shareholders as cash generated increases, until a time where there is more certainty.
Clive Watson, Executive Chairman of The City Pub Group, said:
“Our targeted expansion of high-quality larger pubs with letting rooms has delivered strong progress for the Group in the first half. In the face of robust comparatives, we have delivered good like for like growth too. As our development sites begin trading during 2020, they will drive our performance onward. Our momentum has continued into the second half with strong sales growth.
“We cannot ignore the uncertainty in the market due primarily to Brexit and the potential impact of a No Deal. We are a management team that is focused on the long-term and as such we believe it is prudent for us to rein in our expansion programme until there is more certainty. Instead we will focus on getting our development sites trading, developing our existing estate, reducing our debt and improving our dividends for shareholders. This will further strengthen our position and minimise the impact of any headwinds whilst continuing to deliver significant growth into the future.”