Marshalls plc : Interim Management Statement

Interim Management Statement: 12 November 2013

Trading Performance

Marshalls' revenue from continuing operations for the ten months ended 31 October 2013 was almost unchanged at £265 million (2012: £266 million) and compares with a 4 per cent reduction at the Half Year.  This reflects the continuing improvement in sales performance following the very cold start to the year.

Sales to the Public Sector and Commercial end market, which represent approximately 62 per cent of Marshalls' sales, were down slightly at 2 per cent compared with the prior year period, on a continuing basis. Sales to the Domestic end market, which represent approximately 33 per cent of Group sales, were unchanged. The survey of domestic installers at the end of October 2013 revealed order books of 11.0 weeks (2012: 8.7 weeks) compared with 10.2 weeks at the end of June 2013 (2012: 9.0 weeks). The installer order book has not been at this high level, for a sustained period, since 2004 and it is encouraging that the statistic has continued to strengthen notwithstanding the increased activity of the last few months.

International sales growth continued and increased by 20 per cent in the ten months ended 31 October 2013 and is 5 per cent of Group sales. Continued progress is being made in developing the International business and activity levels continue to be encouraging.

Dividend

The 2013 interim dividend of 1.75 pence per share, announced on 30 August 2013, will be paid on 6 December 2013 to shareholders registered at the close of business on 25 October 2013.

Outlook

The market volume outlook is now more positive and, although it fell slightly in October 2013, the GfK's Consumer Confidence index has improved significantly in the last six months. The index is now higher than at any time since November 2007. The Construction Products Association's Autumn Forecast predicts a reduction in UK market volumes in 2013 of 0.5 per cent, which reflects an improvement from the 10 per cent reduction in the first quarter of the year.  The increase in the growth rate in the second half was anticipated from our lead indicators and therefore there is no change to our expectations for the full year.  The Construction Products Association is forecasting growth of 2.7 per cent and 4.6 per cent for 2014 and 2015 respectively.

Marshalls continues to focus on product innovation and service delivery initiatives to drive sales growth in all its end markets in order to benefit from the operational and financial flexibility that has been built into the Group over recent years. The Group is well placed to improve trading margins and deliver growth if market conditions demonstrate sustained improvement.

Enquiries:

12 November 2013

Note to the Editor:

About Marshalls:

Established in the late 1880s, Marshalls is the UK's leading manufacturer of superior natural stone and innovative concrete hard landscaping products, supplying the construction, home improvement and landscape markets.  Marshalls provides the product ranges, design services, technical expertise, innovative ideas and inspiration to transform gardens, drives and public and commercial landscapes.

Marshalls operates its own quarries and manufacturing sites throughout the UK, including a national network of manufacturing and distribution sites, and has operations in Belgium and sales representation in other international markets.  As a major plc, Marshalls is committed to quality in everything it does, including the achievement of high environmental and ethical standards and continual improvement in health and safety performance.

Forward-Looking Statements:

Any statements in this release, to the extent that they are forward-looking, are subject to risk factors associated with, amongst other things, the economic and business circumstances occurring from time to time in the markets in which Marshalls operates.  It is believed that the expectations reflected in these statements are reasonable but they may be affected by a wide range of variables which could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated.  More information about the factors that may affect Marshalls' performance is contained in the Annual Report to shareholders for the year ended 31 December 2012.