Genus plc Interim results for the six months ended 31 December 2022

GOOD FINANCIAL AND STRATEGIC PROGRESS ACHIEVED

WEBCAST AVAILABLE AT 7:01AM GMT, 2.01 EST

LONDON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Genus (LSE:GNS), a leading global animal genetics company, today announces its interim results for the six months ended 31 December 2022. The full report has been made available on the investors section of the Genus plc website. The Company will discuss its corporate, operational and financial highlights in a pre-recorded webcast at 7:01 AM GMT, 2.01 EST.

Commenting on the performance and outlook, Stephen Wilson (Chief Executive) said:

“The Group achieved a good performance during the first half of the year, despite challenging market conditions for producers in several markets. PIC delivered a new record half year performance, with strong momentum in North America in particular, and China’s performance improved as the porcine market began a gradual recovery from the cyclical downturn, as we had expected.

“The China porcine market has been on a path to recovery since June 2022, but continues to be volatile. Since December the changes in China’s COVID-19 polices and outbreaks of ASF have caused imbalances in supply and demand. The pig price peaked at 28 RMB/kg in October, but has since unexpectedly reduced to the current price of 15 RMB/kg. Industry projections suggest prices will recover in Spring/Summer of 2023, with consumer demand expected to improve following the reduction of COVID-19 restrictions and supply expected to reduce. However, there is still uncertainty as to the shape and strength of this recovery.

“Across the regions ABS has continued to expand business with strategic accounts by building long-term partnerships and offering the leading combination of Sexcel and NuEra beef genetics. This, along with robust price increases to counter inflation, meant ABS achieved strong performances outside Latin America, in particular in North America. Latin American beef and dairy producers faced very challenging conditions during the period, as a result of the inflationary effects on input costs and weak consumer demand. As a result, ABS’s volume in Latin America declined, despite growing market share in Brazil. The political and economic uncertainties in the region are expected to continue to weigh on beef and dairy producers across Latin America for the remainder of the fiscal year.

“We also made good strategic progress with further investments in R&D, with an increase of spend on gene editing as we move towards FDA and international regulatory approval of our PRRSv-resistant pigs.

“The Board remains confident in the Group’s strategy and the many opportunities for Genus. Expectations for the 2023 fiscal year remain unchanged.

“In a separate statement also made today, I have announced my intention to retire on 30 September 2023 following ten years with Genus, the last four of which I have served as the CEO. It has been a great privilege and pleasure to lead such a talented group of people and help to develop Genus into the leading global animal genetics business it is today.

“Genus has many strong growth opportunities, and I will remain fully focused on the continued successful execution of our strategy while the Board progresses the search for my successor, in order to achieve a smooth transition.”

Outlook

As stated above, conditions remain challenging for our customers in several parts of the world. The most volatile conditions are currently being experienced by Chinese pig producers and Brazilian beef producers, and whilst there is some uncertainty as to when a sustained improvement will occur in those markets, we are confident that Genus remains well-placed to take advantage of a recovery. However, the performances of our business elsewhere, in particular in North America, are a testament to the benefits of Genus’s geographic diversification and the strength of our strategy. More broadly, our strong product portfolio and depth of talent in our company give us confidence that we will continue to make strategic and financial progress. Taking these factors into account, the Board’s expectations for the 2023 fiscal year remain unchanged.

Results presentation today

A pre-recorded analysts and bankers briefing to discuss the preliminary results for the six months ended 31 December 2022 will be held via a video webcast facility and will be accessible via the following link from 7:01am today:

https://stream.buchanan.uk.com/broadcast/63cab28d777efd4a8b5137d0

This will be followed by a live Q&A session to be held by invitation via Zoom at 10:30am. Please contact Verity Parker at Buchanan for details; [email protected]

Results Highlights

Good Group performance

• Group revenue increased by 13% in constant currency (25% in actual currency)
• Operating profit including joint ventures up 9% in constant currency (22% in actual currency)
• R&D investment increased by 18%² as planned, including gene editing spend which was up 86%² reflecting the PRRSv programme and continued investment in other discovery projects
• Adjusted profit before tax (PBT) up 1% in constant currency (14% in actual currency); net finance costs up 115%²
• Statutory PBT reduced by 39% to £15.0m with a reduction in the IAS41 valuation of the Group’s biological assets, reflecting higher global interest rates which impacted the valuation discount rates applied

Record half-year PIC performance, gradual recovery in China

• Strong demand for PIC’s differentiated genetics, with both new and existing customers, drove growth in volumes up 5%, revenue up 9%² and strategically important royalty revenue growth across all regions, up 14%²
• Adjusted operating profit including joint ventures increased by 19%², to a new record half-year high
• Strong profit growth continued in North America, solid performances in Latin America and Asia. Europe’s performance impacted by challenging market conditions in certain countries
• In China, PIC’s volumes increased by 23%, with revenue up 11%², royalty revenue up significantly by 102%² and much improved adjusted operating profit of £8.8m (2021: £1.0m)
• The China pig price peaked at 28 RMB/kg in October before falling to 15 RMB/kg currently, due to African Swine Fever (ASF) and COVID-19 related supply and demand volatility.

ABS volumes up 4%, revenue up 13%², despite particularly challenging markets in Latin America

• Expansion of long-term partnerships with strategic accounts underpinned by Sexcel and NuEra genetics drove strong profit growth in North America and solid performances in Europe and Asia. Latin America’s performance impacted by very challenging market conditions, particularly in Brazil where macroeconomics affected supply and demand
• Continued growth in sexed genetics, volumes up 14%, through Sexcel and third party sales of IntelliGen sexed semen production in North America and Europe
• Overall, ABS’s adjusted operating profit declined by 7%² due to Latin America’s profit decrease, adverse production cost variances and planned digital investment costs, partially offset by lower patent royalty payments

Improved cash flows, dividend maintained

• Free cash outflow¹ of £3.3m (2021: £16.1m outflow), reflecting higher adjusted profit performance and lower capital expenditure. Cash conversion of 62%¹ (2021: 63%) in line with seasonal half-year expectations
• Net debt¹ increased to £214.5m as expected, with a net debt to EBITDA ratio of 1.8x¹, within 1.0x-2.0x targeted range
• Adjusted earnings per share 15% higher, interim dividend of 10.3p per share, with 2.8x¹ adjusted earnings cover within 2.5x-3.0x targeted range

Good strategic progress achieved and continued investment for growth

• Good progress on three new world-class elite PIC farms; Atlas (Canada) now fully operational; Ankang (China) has commenced stocking; Granja Genesis (Brazil) is ready for stocking; positioning Genus well to capture future growth opportunities
• GenusOne deployed throughout the UK in the period, implementation underway in the rest of Europe
• Settlement of the 987 appeal, the fee award appeal and the Indian patent litigation with STgenetics (ST), delivering lower patent royalty payments for ABS
• Genus’s PRRSv-resistant pigs programme continues to make progress towards completing the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) submissions by December 2023, with an aim to secure approval in 2024, and we are engaging with other international regulatory agencies

About Genus

Genus advances animal breeding and genetic improvement by applying biotechnology and sells added value products for livestock farming and food producers. Its technology is applicable across livestock species and is currently commercialised by Genus in the dairy, beef and pork food production sectors.

Genus’s worldwide sales are made in over 75 countries under the trademarks ‘ABS’ (dairy and beef cattle) and ‘PIC’ (pigs) and comprise semen, embryos and breeding animals with superior genetics to those animals currently in farms. Genus’s customers’ animals produce offspring with greater production efficiency and quality, and our customers use them to supply the global dairy and meat supply chains.

Genus’s competitive edge comes from the ownership and control of proprietary lines of breeding animals, the biotechnology used to improve them and its global supply chain, technical service and sales and distribution network.

Headquartered in Basingstoke, United Kingdom, Genus companies operate in over 24 countries on six continents, with research laboratories located in Madison, Wisconsin, USA.

Forward-looking Statements

This Announcement may contain, and the Company may make verbal statements containing “forward-looking statements” with respect to certain of the Company’s plans and its current goals and expectations relating to its future financial condition, performance, strategic initiatives, objectives and results. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this Announcement. Forward-looking statements sometimes use words such as “aim”, “anticipate”, “target”, “expect”, “estimate”, “intend”, “plan”, “goal”, “believe”, “seek”, “may”, “could”, “outlook”, “will” or other words of similar meaning. By their nature, all forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and circumstances which are beyond the control of the Company, including amongst other things, diverse factors such as domestic and global economic business conditions, market-related risks such as fluctuations in commodity prices, interest rates and exchange rates, the policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities, the effect of sanctions on the ability to trade, the effect of competition, inflation, deflation, the timing effect and other uncertainties of future acquisitions or combinations within relevant industries, the effect of the spread of African Swine Fever and other animal diseases, the continued development and improvement of our IntelliGen® technology, the development and registration of our innovative new products, such as our gene edited porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus resistant pigs, the continued growth in emerging markets, the effect of tax and other legislation and other regulations in the jurisdictions in which the Company and its respective affiliates operate, the effect of volatility in the equity, capital and credit markets on the Company’s profitability and ability to access capital and credit, a decline in the Company’s credit ratings; the effect of operational risks; and the loss of key personnel. As a result, the actual future financial condition, performance and results of the Company may differ materially from the plans, goals and expectations set forth in any forward-looking statements. Except as required by applicable law or regulation, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to publish any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained in this Announcement to reflect any changes in the Company’s expectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a profit forecast, and no statement in this Announcement should be interpreted to mean that earnings per share of the Company for the current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings per share of the Company. Information contained in this Announcement should not be relied upon as a guide to the Company’s future performance.

This announcement is available on the Genus website www.genusplc.com

Adjusted results are the Alternative Performance Measures (‘APMs’) used by the Board to monitor underlying performance at a Group and operating segment level, which are applied consistently throughout. These APMs should be considered in addition to statutory measures, and not as a substitute for or as superior to them.

Contacts

Enquiries:

Genus plc (Stephen Wilson, Chief Executive Officer / Alison Henriksen, Chief Financial Officer) Tel: +44 1256 345970

Buchanan (Charles Ryland / Chris Lane / Verity Parker) Tel: +44 207 4665000

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