Liberty Holdings Limited - Preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 1999
Liberty Holdings Limited
(Incorporated in the Republic of South Africa)
Registration Number 68/02095/06)
| - |
31 December |
Summarised group
income statement |
1999
Rm |
1998
Rm |
%
Change |
Total consolidated profit after taxation
Minority interests
Dividends on preference shares |
1 626
(729)
(2) |
1 712
(752)
(2) |
(5)
(3)
- |
Total headline profit attributable to ordinary shareholders
Investment surpluses/(deficits) attributable to ordinary shareholders |
895
516 |
958
(3) |
(7) |
| Total profit including investment surpluses/(deficits) attributable to ordinary shareholders |
1 411 |
955 |
48 |
| Headline profit per ordinary share (cents)
Headline profit per ordinary share based on underlying continuing operations (cents)
Number of ordinary shares in issue (000’s)
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue (000’s) |
1 818
1 561
49 240
49 237 |
1 948
1 411
49 236
49 162 |
(7)
11
-
- |
| - |
31 December |
Summarised group
balance sheet |
1999
Rm |
1998
Rm |
| Capital, reserves and liabilities |
Shareholders’ funds
Minority interests
Life funds
Convertible bonds and other liabilities
Retirement benefit obligation
Deferred taxation
Current liabilities |
4 983
4 056
56 183
1 566
98
193
2 135 |
10 134
23 871
64 131
10 774
81
-
4 450 |
| |
69 214 |
113 441 |
| Assets |
Investments
Office furniture, computer equipment and other tangible assets
Deferred taxation
Current assets |
64 991
316
-
3 907 |
104 619
309
67
8 446 |
| Total assets |
69 214 |
113 441 |
| - |
31 December |
Statement of changes
in shareholders’ funds |
1999
Rm |
1998
Rm |
Shareholders’ funds at beginning of year
|
10 134 |
10 025 |
Dividends in specie – unbundlings of:
Liberty International PLC
Standard Bank Investment Corporation Limited
|
(4 173)
(3 287) |
|
Total consolidated profit including investment surpluses/(deficits)
Investment surpluses/(deficits) on shareholders’ investments reflected directly in reserves
Preference dividend
Ordinary dividends
Subscriptions for shares |
1 411
1 286
(2)
(386)
- |
955
(287)
(2)
(667)
110 |
| Shareholders’ funds at 31 December 1999 |
4 983 |
10 134 |
Basis of preparation and disclosure
The financial statements for the twelve months ended 31 December 1999 incorporate both the continuing operations of Liberty Life Association of Africa Limited (Liberty Life) as well as the unbundled operations to the date of the unbundlings. Shareholders are referred to the announcement published by Liberty Life simultaneously with this announcement, for details regarding the basis of preparation and disclosure relating to the life insurance operations of Liberty Life. The total profits presented reflect both continuing and unbundled operations and the 1999 profits are therefore not comparable with those of 1998.
Interest in Liberty Life
Liberty Holdings’ sole investment at 31 December 1999 consisted of its 55,41% (1998: 55,90%) interest in Liberty Life. Liberty Holdings elected to receive the 1998 final dividend from Liberty Life in cash, which diluted its interest to the current level.
Review of operations
Liberty Holdings is the investment holding company of Liberty Life. Details of the activities of Liberty Life are contained in the announcement referred to above. In order to reflect the performance of the underlying continuing operations of Liberty Life, headline profit per ordinary share based on the underlying continuing operations of Liberty Life has been calculated. On this basis headline earnings of 1 561 cents per share reflect an 11% increase on the comparable 1 411 cents for 1998.
Dividends
In keeping with the commitment to maintaining stable dividend cover linked to medium-term trends, total normal dividends for 1999 of Liberty Life have been based on a two times dividend cover on continuing operations (1998: 1,78 times). It is the policy of Liberty Holdings to declare substantially all its earnings for the year as dividends to its shareholders. A final dividend of 410 cents a share has been declared, bringing total dividends for 1999 to 785 cents. Comparison of the total dividends declared during 1999 with the previous year is not meaningful as shareholders will have received dividends directly from their unbundled Liberty International and Stanbic shareholdings.
Prospects
Liberty Holdings remains a pure holding company for the Standard Bank Investment Corporation’s (Stanbic) interests in the Liberty Group and shareholders are accordingly referred to the detailed announcement of Liberty Life.
Declaration of the 1999 final ordinary dividend of 410,0 cents per share
Notice is hereby given that final ordinary dividend No. 61 of 410,0 cents per share (1998: 800,0 cents) has been declared in respect of the year ended 31 December 1999 payable to shareholders registered in the books of the Company at the close of business on Friday, 31 March 2000.
Dividend cheques payable in South African currency will be posted on or about 7 April 2000.
Derek Cooper Roy Andersen
Chairman Group Chief Executive
14 March 2000
Transfer secretaries: Mercantile Registrars Limited, 10th Floor, 11 Diagonal Street, Johannesburg, 2001.
PO Box 1053, Johannesburg, 2000. Tel: (011) 370-5000
