Arden Partners plc

("Arden" or the "Company")

Preliminary results for the year ended 31 October 2009

Arden Partners plc (AIM: ARDN), the institutional stockbroking company, today announces preliminary results for the year ended 31 October 2009.

Financial highlights

• Revenue £13.1 million (2008: £11.4 million)

• Underlying profit before tax* £2.2 million (2008: £2.1 million)

• Underlying basic earnings per share** 8.0p (2008: 6.1p)

• Net cash £10.5m (2008: £9.5m)

*     Profit before tax as adjusted for the effect of share based payments

**     Basic earnings per share as adjusted for the after-tax effect of share based payments

Operational highlights

• Increased client brokerships from 30 to 39

• Sixteen transactions completed during the year, comprising nine M&A,  six secondary fundraisings, and one IPO

• Equities revenue increased by 31%

Commenting on the results and Arden's outlook, Sir David Rowe-Ham, Chairman, said:

"There is no doubt that this has been a challenging year for the City, however the second half of our financial year has reflected an improvement in market conditions and the Board is satisfied with the overall results. We have a strong balance sheet and have generated cash and improved profitability. We closed the year with a cash balance of £10.5 million.

Trading since our year end has been satisfactory. While volumes in the market have been low we have seen a number of corporate transactions complete and we have a satisfactory pipeline of new business subject to market conditions."

Arden Partners plc                                             020 7614 5900

Jonathan Keeling - Chief Executive Officer

Trevor Norris - Finance Director

Altium                                                                 020 7484 4040

Phil Adams / Sam Fuller

Buchanan Communications                                020 7466 5000

Mark Edwards

Chairman's Statement

There is no doubt that this has been a challenging year for the City, however the second half of our financial year has reflected an improvement in market conditions and the Board is satisfied with the overall results. We have a strong balance sheet and have generated cash and improved profitability. We closed the year with a cash balance of £10.5 million.

Current market conditions represent a significant opportunity for the business to grow. We have continued to recruit high calibre staff in all areas of the business. We continue to increase market sector coverage as part of our strategy for growth. The withdrawal of a number of investment banks from the small and mid cap markets has provided opportunities for the Group to not only recruit staff but to also win corporate clients and gain market share, capitalising on these opportunities is a key aspect of our growth strategy. 

Trading since our year end has been satisfactory. While volumes in the market have been low we have seen a number of corporate transactions complete and we have a satisfactory pipeline of new business subject to market conditions. For the year ended 31 October 2009 the Board has decided to invest within growth areas of the business and to take advantage of such opportunities rather than pay a final dividend. We believe this policy will be of long-term benefit to our shareholders.

Finally, I would like to thank all staff and clients for their commitment to the business.

Sir David Rowe-Ham

Chairman

Chief Executive's Statement

Introduction

I am pleased to report that the Group has had a satisfactory year in a challenging market. The profit before tax result of £1.5m should be read within the context of a first-half loss before tax of £0.3m.  

Financial Review

Revenue in the year ended 31 October 2009 was up by 15% to £13.1m (2008: £11.4m). Underlying profit before tax increased by 5% to £2.2m (2008: £2.1m). Profit before tax, which is stated after charging share-based payments, is up 7% to £1.5m (2008: £1.4m). Cash generation was again strong with balances at the year end of £10.5m (2008: £9.5m) which represented some 370% of our regulatory capital requirement.

Underlying basic earnings per share (before charging share based payments) increased by 31% to 8.0p (2008: 6.1p) with underlying diluted earnings per share increasing by 36% to 7.5p (2008: 5.5p). Basic earnings per share increased by 65% to 5.1p (2008: 3.1p).

Equities Division

Our Equities Division revenue increased by 31% to £8.5m (2008: £6.5m) against an increase in the FTSE All Share index of 18% over the same period. Since the year end, commission income levels have been satisfactory.

Corporate Finance

During the year we completed sixteen corporate finance transactions (2008: twelve) including nine M&A, six secondary fundraisings and one IPO.  

Outlook

The current year has started satisfactorily and Arden has to date raised some £111m for corporate clients. We have relocated our main office to 125 Old Broad Street which provides the space and infrastructure for future growth.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank our staff for their commitment through challenging conditions.

Jonathan Keeling

Chief Executive Officer

Consolidated Income Statement

For the year ended 31 October 2009

Consolidated Balance Sheet

At 31 October 2009

Consolidated Cash Flow Statement

For the year ended 31 October 2009

Consolidated Statement of changes in equity

For the year ended 31 October 2009

Consolidated Statement of changes in equity 

For the year ended 31 October 2008

Notes

• The Employee Benefit Trust reserve represents shares held in the parent company by the Arden Partners Employee Benefit Trust, which is consolidated in these financial statements.

• The Available for Sale reserve represents unrealised gains and losses on available for sale investments, being the difference between the acquisition cost and fair value at the balance sheet date. The reserve is shown net of related deferred tax.

NOTES

The financial information set out in this announcement has been prepared in accordance with the recognition and measurement principles of IFRS as endorsed for use in the European Union.

The financial information set out in this announcement does not constitute the group's statutory accounts for the year ended 31 October 2009 or the year ended 31 October 2008 under the meaning of s434 Companies Act 2006, but is derived from the 2009 annual report and accounts. 

Statutory accounts for the years ended 31 October 2008 and 31 October 2009 have been reported on by the Independent Auditors. 

The Independent Auditors' Report on the Annual Report and Financial Statements for year ended 31 October 2008 was unqualified, did not draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis, and did not contain a statement under 237(2) or 237(3) of the Companies Act 1985. 

The Independent Auditors' Report on the Annual Report and Financial Statements for year ended 31 October 2009 was unqualified, did not draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis, and did not contain a statement under 498(2) or 498(3) of the Companies Act 2006. 

Statutory accounts for the year ended 31 October 2008 have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The statutory accounts for the year ended 31 October 2009 will be delivered to the Registrar in due course.

Revenue is wholly attributable to the principal activity of the Group and arises solely within the United Kingdom.

Included within revenue of the Corporate Finance Division is an amount of £155,000 (2008: £nil) relating to the fair value adjustment of derivatives held within trading investments that are fair valued through the income statement.

The Directors are of the opinion that there are only two business segments and that business resources cannot be readily allocated to segments for the purposes of deriving either profit or net assets.

Staff costs (including Directors) of the Group consist of:

The average number of employees (including Directors) of the Group during the year was 55 (2008: 51) of which 41 (2008: 40) are front-office and the remainder are administration.

In addition to the basic earnings per share, underlying earnings per share has been shown because the Directors consider that this gives a more meaningful indication of the underlying performance of the Group. Where applicable, all adjustments are stated after taking into consideration the appropriate tax treatment.

The shares held by the Arden Partners Employee Benefit Trust have been treated as cancelled and excluded from the denominator. The comparative has been restated to reflect this treatment.

Copies of the 2009 Report and Accounts will be posted to shareholders in due course.  Copies will also be available from the Company's registered office and from the Company's website.