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Date: Wednesday 28 May 2008

LONDON (ShareCast) - Electronic components distributor Abacus Group toned down expectations for the full year as it halved its dividend at the interim stage.

The group said “trading in the first half of 2008 has been ahead of the board’s expectations but for the rest of the year is now expected to be in line with second half 2007.”

In the six months to 31 March 2008 pre-tax profit eased slightly to £5.8m from £5.9m in the corresponding period of the previous year, despite the group realising a book profit of £2.3m on the sale of two buildings in the UK.

Excluding exceptional items and amortisation of intangibles the pre-tax profit figure dropped to £4.5m, versus £6.8m a year earlier.

Revenue slipped to £139.1m from £148.6m, reflecting deteriorating trading conditions in the group's’markets.

Gross margin in the UK has been trimmed by six-tenths of a full percentage point as a result of the strength of the euro.

Current reading conditions are stable with scant indications of growth in the group’s markets.

“It is encouraging that the trading conditions have not deteriorated further as the macro economic situation has become more difficult and so the board is confident that by the end of this year the group will have lower debt levels and continuing satisfactory sales performance,” said Harry Westropp, Abacus’s chairman.

The board has decided that dividend payments should be covered at least twice by earnings and thus has halved the interim dividend to 1.8p.

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