News blog

Artisan (UK)

BY: Andrew Hore |
POSTED: 21/12/2011 |
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Housebuilder and property investor Artisan (UK) intends to cancel its Aim quotation in order to save management time and costs.

Management says that having to provide trading statements is “potentially commercially disadvantageous“.

If the shareholders agree then trading in the shares will end on 2 February. A matched bargains facility will be provided for 12 months.

Aspen Finance, which owns 69.5% of Artisan, will subscribe for a £1m, three year convertible loan note with an annual interest rate of 5%. The conversion price is 14.5p a share. The share price fell 7p to 7.5p following the announcement of the proposed cancellation. That values Artisan at £1m.

The nominal value of the shares will be reduced from 20p to 1p. The issue of the loan note is dependent on the negotiation of new bank facilities. The negotiations are continuing. More cash is likely to be required on top of the loan note and new bank facility. A temporary waiver of a potential covenant breach has been provided for the existing facility.

Revenues fell from £9.4m to £7.4m in the year to June 2011, with most of them coming from the housebuilding business. Artisan made a gross loss and reported a loss before tax of £2.67m, up from £1.92m the previous year. Net debt was £17.2m at the end of June 2011, although a property disposal has raised £3.25m from the sale of a long leasehold building on its Colmworth Business Park at St Neots, Cambridgeshire.

Download the latest AIM Journal from http://www.hubinvest.com/AIMPDFDecember2011_27.pdf