- 2007 revenues increase 77% to $124.7 million
- 2007 Operating profit increases 45% to $14.1 million
- 2007 after-tax net income increases 44% to $11.7 million
- 2007 Diluted EPS of $0.67
DALIAN, China, April 2, 2008 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Energroup Holdings Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: ENHD), through its subsidiaries known as "Chuming," processor and supplier of fresh and prepared meat products based in Dalian, China, announced the Company's full year financial results for the year ended December 31, 2007. All financial numbers reported in this press release have been rounded to one decimal place for convenience.
"We achieved strong year-over-year growth in 2007," stated Mr. Huashan Shi, Chairman and CEO of Chuming. "We showed further improvements in our higher-margin processed pork segment, where we produce three product lines, including over 100 types of hams and sausages, in addition to over 200 promotional and seasonal products. We believe our processed pork segment will continue to be an important contributor to growth during 2008," Mr. Shi further commented.
Full Year 2007 Results
Revenues for the year ended December 31, 2007 totaled $124.7 million, a 77% increase over the $70.4 million reported in 2006, which was driven by an increase in the average per-kilogram price customers paid coupled by an increase in overall sales volume. All of Chuming's revenues are realized from sales within China, and approximately 78% of its revenues were from fresh pork, 7% from frozen pork, and 15% from processed meats (approximately 2% of which is from seafood products). Each of Chuming's product categories reported significant year-over-year growth. More specifically, fresh pork sales increased 112%, frozen pork sales increased 22%, and processed meat and meat by-products increased 6.3%. Within the processed meats category, sales of Chuming's new processed seafood products that were launched toward the end of 2005, increased 130% as compared to the prior year. Additionally, the company began selling its products to over 170 new franchise operators.
Gross profit for 2007 was $20.3 million, representing a 61% increase from the $12.6 million reported in 2006. Overall, gross margins were 16.3% in 2007, compared to 17.9% in 2006.
"China now produces 50% of the pork consumed globally, an approximately $32 billion market. Most of our industry's production is focused on meeting the demand from the local market in China," Shi began his comments, "As consumers become more sophisticated, traditional sales of fresh pork in open air "wet" markets are being replaced by the retail sector, termed "dry" markets. We believe over 80% of overall pork sales in China are still made in open air markets and represent a significant market opportunity as consumers become accustomed to and expect to purchase pork in dry markets such as Western-style supermarkets. Chuming's sales strategy of catering to the retail market through both our franchised stores and other retail channels, including global hypermarkets, is a strategy that we believe will successfully drive revenue growth for processed meats, particularly pork, while helping us to gain further market share."
Total operating expenses for 2007 were $6.2 million versus $2.9 million for 2006 and the increase was directly attributed to the addition of new sales and marketing staff, plus advertising and promotional expenses, including television, radio and magazine placements, as part of an overall strategy to support Chuming's brand positioning in the over 3,600 retail locations that its products are sold through. In 2007, Chuming significantly increased its advertising budget from $150,000 in 2006 to $3.8 million in 2007. Total operating expenses for 2007 were 5.1% of sales versus 4.0% for 2006.
"Our brand notoriety, which is supported by the Green Food Certification, has enabled us to mitigate declines in gross margins by passing along price increases more easily than many competitors, which have not been as fortunate. We anticipate margins will at minimum stabilize and possibly increase during 2008 as hog prices stabilize," Mr. Shi concluded.
Operating income increased 70% to $14.1 million in 2007 versus $9.7 million for 2006, while operating margins were 11.3% compared to 13.8%.
For 2007, the company incurred approximately $1 million in income taxes which yielded an effective tax rate of 8.5%. In 2008, the company expects to pay no tax for revenues derived from fresh and frozen pork and 25% on processed pork and seafood.
After tax net income for 2007 increased 44% year-over-year to $11.7 million from $8.1 million and earnings per diluted share were $0.67 in 2007 as compared with $0.47 per share in the prior year, based upon 17.3 million shares outstanding. The discrepancy between reported net income and preliminary guidance of $12.1 million came from the GAAP ratio utilized in converting RMB to dollars, which was determined using a blended average taken during the entire 2007 year. Specifically, the exchange rate on December 31, 2007 was 7.31RMB = $1 US, while the average annual exchange rate was 7.61RMB = $1 US. As such, the foreign currency translation adjustment was approximately $2.1 million and the comprehensive income for 2007 was $13.7 million.
"We remain confident in our growth strategy, which includes expansion through adding additional franchise stores and increasing sales through our large retail distribution footprint. We plan to accommodate this growth by more than doubling the Company's annual processing capacity during 2008 from 13,000 metric tons to 30,000 metric tons," Shi opened, "While we believe that market prices of pork should stabilize, Chuming is unique in that it enjoys a favorable advantage by maintaining a production facility close to its main supply of hogs, while our primary market, the Liaoning Province and Northeastern China, which is home to approximately 108 million people, is largely untapped by a sophisticated processor like Chuming."
Balance Sheet and Financial Position
As of December 31st, 2007 the Company reported cash and cash equivalents of $14 million and restricted cash of $4.3 million, versus $3.1 million at December 31, 2006. Cash balances reflect the proceeds from the Company's initial $17 million capital raise which was completed in December, 2007. Cash flow from operations was $23.0 million. Accounts receivables on December 31st, 2007 were $0.6 million compared to $1.8 million as the Company instituted a new policy which required agents to pay promptly for products ordered. The company's current ration was 1.7 to 1 and the Company had $7.4 million of bank loans and notes payable. Shareholder's equity on December 31, 2007 was $51.3 million.
About Chuming
We are a Nevada corporation quoted on the OTC Bulletin Board, with our operations based in the Liaoning Province in Northeastern China. Chuming is a leading regional producer and distributor of fresh and prepared meat products in Northeastern China, which has a population of approximately 108 million. We operate through our subsidiaries, including Dalian Chuming Slaughter and Packaging Pork Company, Ltd., Dalian Chuming Processed Foods Company, Ltd., and Dalian Chuming Sales Company, Ltd., whose primary focus is on the processing and preparation of pork, the most consumed meat in China. We are a contract supplier of premium pork products to more than 3,600 retail locations in China, including Wal-Mart, Metro, Carrefour, New-Mart, Hymall and its own network of 500+ Chuming-branded franchise stores. Our processing and distribution facilities maintain ISO 9001 Quality Management System standards and carry a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) certification. Chuming is the first processing company in China's meat industry to receive "Green Food" Certification from the Ministry of Agriculture, meeting strict environmental, food safety and quality standards from slaughter to shelf.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information
This press release contains forward-looking information and statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, including targeted net income. These statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "believe," "expect," "may," "will," "should," "project," "plan," "seek," "intend," or "anticipate" or the negative thereof or comparable terminology, and statements which may include discussions of strategy, and statements about industry trends future performance, operations and products of the entities referred to above. Our actual results may differ materially depending on a number of risk factors including, but not limited to, our ability to timely and accurately complete orders products, our dependence on a limited number of major customers, political and economic conditions within the PRC, our ability to expand and grow our distribution channels, general economic conditions which affect consumer demand for our products, the effect of terrorist acts, or the threat thereof, on consumer confidence and spending, acceptance in the marketplace of our new products and changes in consumer preferences, foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, our ability to identify and successfully execute cost control initiatives, and other risks outlined above and in our public filings. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this Cautionary Statement and the risks factors detailed in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no duty to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release.
FINANCIAL TABLES
The following financial information for the twelve-month periods ending December 31, 2007, 2006 and 2005 were derived from audited financial statements of Energroup Holdings Corporation. Historical results are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for any future period. The following information should be reviewed in conjunction with the audited financial statements and accompanying footnotes as presented in the Company's Annual Report of Form 10-K for 2007.
(US dollars in thousands)
Twelve Months Ended December 31,
2007 2006 2005
(audited) (audited) (audited)
Consolidated Statements
of Operations Data:
Sales 124,696 70,396 54,119
Cost of Sales 104,379 57,794 45,284
Gross Profit 20,317 12,601 8,835
Operating Expenses 6,246 2,891 1,647
Income from Operations 14,071 9,709 7,188
Other Income (Expense), net (1,476) (1,583) (1,008)
Income Before Taxes 12,620 8,126 6,180
Income Taxes 968 1.6 191
Net Income 11,652 8,128 5,988
Foreign Currency Translation 2,064 285 0.7
Comprehensive Income 13,716 8,739 5,989
Basic Net Income Per Share
(in US$) 0.67 0.47 0.35
Diluted Net Income Per Share
(in US$) 0.67 0.47 0.35
Basic Weighted Average
Number of Shares
Outstanding 17,272,756 17,272,756 17,272,756
Diluted Weighted
Average Number of
Shares Outstanding 17,272,756 17,272,756 17,272,756
Energroup Holdings Corporation
Consolidated Balance Sheets
At December 31, 2007, 2006, and 2005
(Stated in US Dollars)
2007 2006 2005
ASSETS
Current Assets
Cash $ 14,031,851 $ 3,075,787 $ 10,179,414
Restricted Cash 4,250,000 -- --
Accounts Receivable 622,433 1,798,397 3,247,304
Other Receivable 1,068,939 679,019 1,006,541
Related Party Receivable 3,964,357 13,148,788 -
Inventory 2,916,016 2,385,447 2,850,213
Advance to Suppliers 267,807 1,110,449 704,706
Prepaid Expenses 46,401 90,913 48,191
Prepaid Taxes 185,319 -- --
Deferred Tax Asset 613,844 574,316 158,992
Total Current Assets 27,966,967 22,863,116 18,195,361
Non-Current Assets
Property, Plant &
Equipment, net 24,836,496 20,875,462 21,093,489
Land Use Rights, net 12,855,980 8,911,119 8,525,125
Construction in Progress 927,866 4,165,407 3,149,690
Other Assets 32,619 30,519 29,553
Total Assets $ 66,619,928 $ 56,845,623 $ 50,993,218
LIABILITIES & STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current Liabilities
Bank Loans $ 7,383,095 $ 6,971,538 $ 3,777,838
Accounts Payable 3,779,274 4,207,992 7,645,595
Taxes Payable 1,677,194 2,259,465 831,699
Other Payable 1,471,381 1,362,607 842,806
Accrued Liabilities 3,347,013 912,707 988,851
Customer Deposits 24,161 1,049,212 437,472
Related Party Payable -- -- 4,454,927
Total Current Liabilities 17,682,118 16,763,521 18,979,188
Long Term Liabilities
Bank Loans -- 17,908,539 18,579,533
Total Liabilities $ 17,682,118 $ 34,672,060 $37,558,721
Stockholders' Equity
Preferred Stock - $0.001
Par Value 10,000,000
Shares Authorized; 0
Shares Issued &
Outstanding at December
31, 2007, 2006, and 2005,
respectively. $ -- $ -- $ --
Common Stock - $0.001 Par
Value 21,739,130 and
17,273,756 Shares
Authorized; 21,136,392
Shares Issued &
Outstanding at December
31, 2007, 2006, and 2005,
respectively. 21,137 17,273 17,273
Additional Paid in Capital 15,440,043 2,396,079 2,396,079
Statutory Reserve 751,444 751,444 72,508
Retained Earnings 29,764,236 18,112,089 10,662,654
Accumulated Other
Comprehensive Income 2,960,951 896,679 285,983
Total Stockholders' Equity 48,937,811 22,173,564 13,434,497
Total Liabilities &
Stockholders' Equity $ 66,619,928 $ 56,845,623 $50,993,218
