DICOM Group plc - First Quarter Results 2005/2006 – Three Months to 30 September 2005

DICOM Group plc - First Quarter Results 2005/2006 – Three Months to 30 September 2005

DICOM Group plc - First Quarter Results 2005/2006 – Three Months to 30 September 2005 First customer wins for combined Ascent and Topcall installations; strong pipeline Basingstoke, 8 November 2005 - DICOM Group plc ('DICOM Group'), a global leader of Information Capture and Communications solutions, today announced financial results for its first quarter ended 30 September 2005 under International Financial Reporting Standards (´IFRS`). Financial Highlights of the First Quarter Results Group results - Revenue up 14% to £42.8m (Q1 FY2005: £37.6m), organic growth of 3% - Gross profit margins up from 42.2% to 44.5% - Restructuring charge of £1.2m as previously identified - Adjusted* operating profit down £1.4m to £1.3m (£2.7m) - Loss before tax of £0.5m compared to profit before tax of £2.7m in the previous period - Adjusted* earnings per share down 52% to 4.6p (9.5p) - Operating cash flow of £1.5m (£1.8m) Results of IC Division, representing 95% (94%) of Group adjusted operating profits - Turnover up 18% to £33.6m (£28.5m), organic growth of 3% - IC own products and services now account for 68% (63%) of IC sales - Own product sales up 9% (down 6% on a like-for-like basis), services grew 55% (up 19% on a like-for-like basis) - Gross profit margins increased to 53.5% (51.9%) - Adjusted* operating profits down £1.3m to £1.2m (£2.5m) Key impact of change to IFRS accounting: - New share-based payment charge - No regular goodwill amortisation - New charge for amortisation of intangible assets arising on acquisition of Topcall and Neurascript Other Highlights - First customer wins for combined Ascent and Topcall installations - Significant new customer wins include Corporate Express Inc., Raiffeisenbank Switzerland, The Department of State, SPAR Oesterreichische Warenhandels-AG, - Continuing revenue mix shift towards higher margin own products and services - Significant progress made towards integration of Topcall and Neurascript, product development, sales and marketing - Pipeline significantly ahead of the comparable period of last year - Launch of new real-time sales order processing solution incorporating Topcall facsimile handling technology - Adjusted profit is the profit after adding back the amortisation of intangibles, costs of restructuring and share-based payment charges. Further details are set out in note 3 to the financial statements. Commenting, Arnold von Büren, Chief Executive Officer of DICOM Group said: 'As announced in our trading update on 6 October 2005, the first quarter results are below our expectations. However the reorganisation measures that we have undertaken are expected to deliver improvements to profitability when they are completed later this year. We are pleased with the progress made towards the integration of Topcall and Neurascript. Also we believe that the expansion into the Business Process Automation market provides excellent opportunities for additional growth. Despite the slow first quarter and the subsequent impact on both the half and full year, we expect adjusted operating profits for the full year to show an increase compared to last year.' Regarding Prospects, Otto Schmid, Chairman of DICOM Group said: 'The larger information capture contract wins we are achieving indicate the continuing momentum and potential of the business. DICOM Group has an unmatched product range, substantial and proven channel relationships, and a broad customer base. Despite a slow start to the financial year the Board remains encouraged by the sales pipeline, which is significantly ahead of the comparable period of last year.' About DICOM Group plc DICOM Group plc ('DICOM Group', London Stock Exchange: DCM) is the global leader in Information Capture. Its leading edge capture and communication technologies and solutions enable Business Process Automation by managing the transformation and exchange of business-critical information (residing in various formats such as paper, fax, electronic documents, e-mail, SMS) among people, applications and devices. The companyÂ’s centres for product development and marketing include Kofax, the worldÂ’s leading provider of Information Capture solutions, and Topcall, a worldwide provider of Unified Communication technology. Through a global network of more than 1,200 authorised partners and its own sales and service organisations in Europe, the USA, Asia and Australia, DICOM Group help blue-chip enterprises in more than 60 countries to reduce cost, increase efficiency and minimise risk in their critical business processes. For more information, visit http://www.dicomgroup.com The Group's Samsung General Agency (SGA) Division focuses on multimedia visualisation products for the IT, POI and Entertainment market in Switzerland. It operates as sole agency of Samsung's high performance flat screen display. To view the complete release, please go to: http://www.dicomgroup.com For further questions, we are gladly at your disposal: Gabriele Rosenbusch - Group Communications Manager Tel: +49 (0) 761 45 269 192 Fax: +49 (0) 761 45 269 8192 e-mail: gabriele_rosenbusch@dicomgroup.com