Latest Results

Interim Results

“Significant revenue and profit growth with unchanged outlook for the year”

Financial Highlights

•  A significant reduction in Net Debt (including lease liabilities) was reported in the period (£11.9 million). Net Debt as at 30 June 2023 stood at £61.2 million (30 June 2022: £74.2 million, 31 December 2022: £73.1 million).
• Cash collections from settled cases increased 14% to £77.4 million (H1 2022: £67.9 million), excluding the legal fees associated with the Volkswagen AG (‘VW’) Emissions Claim.
• The Group generated £15.7 million in Net Cash from Operating Activities (H1 2022: Net Cash Used in Operating Activities: £5.1 million), a total improvement of £20.8 million.
• Revenue increased 13% to £77.8 million (H1 2022: £68.6 million), reflecting the agreement reached in the VW Emissions Claim and increased legal fee income from both Credit Hire and Housing Disrepair (“HDR”) claim settlements.
• Operating profit increased 19% to £19.3 million (H1 2022: £16.1 million) due to improved cash collections from all divisions in addition to the proceeds of the VW agreement, whilst the number of new credit hire cases has been actively managed.

Operational Highlights

• The Group has shown robust growth within legal services, driving the increase seen in cash collections. HDR continues to be an ever-increasing element, with revenues increasing by over 25%. The HDR division settled 884 claims in H1 2023 (H1 2022: 556) and now has a portfolio of 3,291 claims (H1 2022: 2,218).
• The results for the period include the agreement reached in the VW emissions case. The terms of the agreement are subject to confidentiality restrictions. The Group announced on 5 June 2023 that the agreement had resulted in a net positive cash position to Anexo of £7.2 million.
• The Group continued its investment in litigation concerning the Mercedes Benz Emissions Claim, with a total of over 12,000 claimants now forming part of the group action.
• Vehicle numbers continued to be carefully managed to maximise efficient use of working capital, supporting the significant reduction in Net Debt. Strong growth is forecast for H2 2023 resulting from a steady increase in vehicle numbers.
• The average number of Group vehicles on the road in H1 2023 reached 1,634, some 20% below that seen in H1 2022 (2,034). Vehicle numbers at 18 August 2023 totalled 1,795.

Commenting on the Interim Results, Alan Sellers, Executive Chairman of Anexo Group plc, said:

“The Board has been focused on delivering a meaningful reduction in net debt and increasing cash collections during the first half of the year. The results presented here are testament to the quality of our people, the ever-increasing diversity of the Group’s activities and our commitment to investment into future growth and opportunities for the business.

“We are immensely proud to be able to offer social justice and full legal support to our clients and members of the public. Anexo provides assistance to people who find themselves in an invidious position through no fault of their own, whether through being deprived of an essential vehicle or through living in substandard housing conditions, along with the other problems which may be exacerbated by such situations. We remain committed to providing help to those who might otherwise be unable to obtain redress.

“Having demonstrated our ability to drive the business for cash generation, we are expecting growth in vehicle numbers, revenues and profits in the second half of the year, without the need to fund this growth from our current debt facilities. As cash collections continue to increase, we will be able to invest further and drive growth across all our divisions including HDR and emissions claims.

“The strong progress being made in HDR and group emissions litigation underpins the forecast growth in the core business. The Board remains confident of meeting market expectations for the year.”

Results Conference Call

An analyst conference call will be held at 09:30 BST today, 22 August 2023. Retail investors will also be able to listen to the call but will not be eligible to ask questions. A copy of the Interim Results presentation is available at the Group's website: https://www.anexo-group.com/. Please contact Nick Dashwood Brown, Head of Investor Relations, at [email protected] if you would like to join the call.

An audio webcast of the conference call with analysts will be available after 12:00 BST today on the Company’s website: www.anexo-group.com

Executive Chairman’s Statement

On behalf of the Board, I am pleased to announce Anexo’s results for the six-month period ended 30 June 2023. The Group has continued to demonstrate the effectiveness of its business model, concentrating firmly on the transition of the Group to a cash generative position and the achievement of a reduction in net debt. Vehicle numbers within the credit hire division have been actively managed, while increased case settlements within the legal services division, including HDR, have driven the rise in cash collections.

The strong performance in the first half of the year will enable the Group to continue accepting an increased number of claims in the second half leading to an improvement in both revenues and profitability without the need to increase debt.

H1 2023 Group Performance

Anexo has actively managed the business to attain its stated goals of reducing net debt and improving the conversion of profits to free cash. The Group has delivered a strong performance across all key financial metrics and KPIs over the first six months of the year. Having increased case settlements alongside the VW Emissions agreement, Group revenues in H1 2023 increased by 13% to £77.8 million (H1 2022: £68.6 million) and profit before tax rose by 11% to £15.2 million (H1 2022: £13.6 million).

Legal Services Division

Credit Hire

The Group remains committed to its strategy of increasing its claim settlement capacity, thereby maximising cash collections. The number of senior fee earners remained broadly unchanged during the period, standing at 243 as at 30 June 2023. The overall number of legal staff rose by 9% to 690 (H1 2022: 633).

Investment during 2022 has underpinned continued growth in cash collections, which rose 14% in H1 2023 to a total of £77.4 million (H1 2022: £67.9 million), excluding any value from the VW Emissions agreement. Revenues from the Legal Services division, which strongly converts to cash, more than doubled in the period to £43.0 million in H1 2023 (H1 2022: £21.4 million), this figure includes the proceeds from the VW agreement. Profit before taxation increased sharply from £1.2 million in H1 2022 to £11.6 million in H1 2023, reflecting an improvement in the core business activities and the VW Emissions agreement in the period.

Housing Disrepair

The Group’s HDR division continues to show significant growth. The number of ongoing claims currently stands at approximately 3,300. HDR is now cash generative as the value of fee income generated from settled claims exceeds the investment in staff and marketing costs for the generation of new claims. Net cash generation totalled £0.4 million in H1 2023 (H1 2022: Net cash outflow £0.3 million). The current claims portfolio is expected to contribute to an improvement in performance in the second half of the year and beyond.

With an increase in revenues, HDR reported a profit of £2.6 million in the period (H1 2022: £2.4 million) having invested £2.2 million in new claims (H1 2022: £1.7 million). These marketing costs continue to be written off as incurred.

Emissions Litigation

The advocacy team reached an agreement in the claim against VW and its subsidiaries. The terms of the agreement are subject to confidentiality restrictions; the Group announced on 5 June 2023 that the agreement had resulted in a net positive cash position to Anexo of £7.2 million.

The Group continues to pursue litigation in other emissions cases, particularly in relation to Mercedes Benz. The Group currently has approximately 12,000 Mercedes cases (H1 2022: approximately 4,000 Mercedes cases).

Management believes there is a significant continued opportunity for investment in emissions claims against specific vehicle manufacturers. Accordingly, the Group has earmarked a continued ongoing level of investment for the second half of the year and beyond. Investment for the current year is being funded from an additional £2.8 million, provided to the Group in part by certain of the principal shareholders and directors of the Group.

Credit Hire Division

Whilst demand for vehicles has remained strong throughout the period, the Group has actively managed the number of new claims accepted to levels which maximise the conversion of profitability to operating cash flow whilst supporting funding into other group activities such as HDR and emissions. This also provides a strong and diverse platform for future opportunities including credit hire opportunities.

Having increased cash collections month on month to new record levels, the Group has increased the number of claims funded throughout H1 2023; vehicle numbers increased to 1,961 at 30 June 2023, some 20% above the average levels seen in the first half. Vehicle numbers are fundamental to managing revenues and profits, and this increase supports the Group’s expectation of strong growth in the second half of the year.

Against the backdrop of strong demand, the considered careful management of the fleet has seen a consequent decline in Credit Hire revenue, reported at £28.9 million in H1 2023 (H1 2022: £42.5 million), and a resultant reduction in profit before tax to £2.2 million. Completed vehicle hires reduced to 4,689 in H1 2023 (H1 2022: 5,501) but with vehicle numbers now approaching 2,000, the expectation is that activity levels will rise driving a significant improvement in performance for the Credit Hire Division in the second half of the year.

Dividend 

The Group continues to invest heavily in future opportunities including HDR and Emissions and the Board has therefore resolved that the interests of the Group and its shareholders would be best served by considering the position with regards to payment of a dividend following the preparation of the Group’s full year results.

Outlook

The focus in the first half of 2023 has been firmly on the conversion of profits to operating cash flows. The Group has shown robust growth during the period and plans to continue to optimise cash generation in the second half, whilst increasing activity levels within the Credit Hire division to levels previously seen in the first half of 2022.

Growth in cash collections allows the Group to increase activity, including continued investment in HDR and additional emissions claims, without the need for increases in net debt. The focus for the second half is to ensure this investment is self-funded. Management has confidence in meeting market expectations for the year.

Alan Sellers
Executive Chairman
22 August 2023

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income
For the unaudited period ended 30 June 2023

The above results were derived from continuing operations.

Consolidated Statement of Financial Position
Unaudited at 30 June 2023

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity
For the unaudited period ended 30 June 2023

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows
For the unaudited period ended 30 June 2023

Notes to the Interim Statements
For the unaudited period ended 30 June 2023

The notes are available in the printable pdf of the results. To download it, please click here