Baycorp Advantage forecasts 20pc rise in earnings

Trans-Tasman debt collector Baycorp Advantage was upbeat about the year ahead after posting a net loss of A$299.9 million ($356.4 million) in its statutory accounts for the June year.

The result was weighed down by A$309.1 million in one-off items, including a writedown of goodwill on consolidation (A$228 million) and writedown of New Zealand databases (A$65.6 million).

Baycorp Advantage was created through the merger in December of New Zealand's Baycorp Holdings and Australian associate Data Advantage.

Managing director Keith McLaughlin said the company was 90 per cent through the integration process.

He said Baycorp was on target to deliver a 20 per cent increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) in the present financial year, in addition to synergy benefits from the merger.

"We are now very well positioned as a united organisation to go forward to increase shareholder value," he told journalists in Sydney.

"We are certainly looking forward and not looking back, but when we look back over the last 12 months, we have grown our business effectively during the period under review."

Mr McLaughlin said it was difficult to comment on the fall in Baycorp's share price after the result was announced.

Baycorp shares closed in New Zealand down 9c at $4.26.

"But perhaps once the market has had time to digest the strong operational performance of the company, the underlying growth aspirations and our confidence in our ability to deliver growth, it will have a better understanding of what this announcement means," he said.

Baycorp said its revenues rose 60 per cent to A$122.4 million, while net operating cash flows of A$21.3 million were up 23 per cent on the previous year.

The statutory accounts included 12 months of Baycorp Advantage Australia, and six months and 18 days of New Zealand operations since the merger.

Baycorp also issued a set of pro forma accounts, which assumed that the merger was completed on July 1, 2001, and included a full 12 months of both Australian and New Zealand operations.

It showed revenue increasing 16 per cent to A$155.3 million, ebitda up 17 per cent to A$54.9 million, and all business units recording double-digit growth.

- NZPA