COMPANY NEWS CANTERBURY MEAT

Press, Volume XCV, Issue 28179, 18 January 1957, Page 15

COMPANY NEWS CANTERBURY MEAT

STEADY DIVIDEND RECOMMENDED

Net consolidated profit of the Canterbury Frozen Meat and Dairy Produce Export Company, Ltd., and subsidiaries, for the 11 months ended October 31, 1956, was £247,466. The accounts are the first to be issued by a freezing company since the Companies Act, 1955, came into force this year. The act requires the publication of consolidated accounts of the company and its subsidiaries, not previously required. Because of this provision, and others in the new act, many of the figures in the latest accounts are not comparable with those of earlier years. In particular, the net profit of the parent company £218,039 for the 11 months to October 31, 1956—is not comparable with the £107,513 earned in the year ended November 30, 1955. Ordinary dividend is maintained at 10 per cent., and the 2| per cent, bonus paid last year is retained. Since the previous balance date ordinary capital has been increased from £150,000 to £290,980, and the dividend requirement is raised from £18,750 to £36,091. Payment of the 6 per cent, preference dividend will require an unchanged £6OOO. Transfers of £52,313 to buildings and plant reserve (bringing it to £250,0001 and £lOO,OOO to contingency reserve (bringing it to £177,290) have been made by the directors. Last year £75,000 was transferred to the buildings and plant reserve and £57,687 from the renewals and replacement reserve was also transferred to this reserve. An unspecified transfer to contingency reserves was also made last year, and £24,161 was transferred to a new capital reserve account. This year’s appropriations fall short of the parent company’s net profit by £23.635, and carry-for-ward is increased by this amount to £90,064. Amounts retained in the accounts of the subsidiaries total £42.013.

Paid capital was raised during the H months from £250,000 (excluding advance payments on account of the new issue) to £390.980 (excluding calls paid in advance). Reserves of the parent company and subsidiaries, listed for the first time, comprise £101,169 in capital reserves and £834,367 in revenue reserves, made up of general reserve (£185.000), insurance reserve (£90,000), buildings and plant reserve (£250.000), contingency reserve (£177,290), and undistributed profits (£132,077). Interests of outside shareholders total £10,842. Trade creditors, provision for taxation and clients’ and other balances total £890,375.

Fixed assets, at cost less deprecition (for which £68,302 was provided this year), total £696.154. Fixed assets of the parent company, on the same basis, total £674,738, compared with £642,051 11 months earlier. Other assets of the parent company and subsidiaries are; investments. £26,437; mortgages, etc.. £45,703; and current assets, £1,501,563. Current assets comprise stock, etc., £1,041,115;; sundry debtors, etc., £189.646: Government stock, £49,500; and cash. £221.307. Except for the cash item—£B3,s3B. in the parent’s balance-sheet—the current assets of the parent company show little difference from the figures given in the consolidated balance-sheet. In last year’s balance-sheet the parent company was shown to have a bank overdraft of £526,359.

Shipping Improves A further innovation by the com* pany this year is the issue of the chairman’s statement with the accounts. instead of at the annual meetifig. In his statement (printed in full elsewhere in this issue) the chairman, Mr John Deans, explains the alterations in the presentation of the accounts resulting from the new act. “At the close of last year’s accounts we had heavy stocks of meat unsold, due to delays in shipping, and it was not until March of this year that we had sold all the previous season’s meat,” says the statement. “During 1956 the shipping position improved considerably, with consequently better arrivals of our meat in the United Kingdom. As well as selling the balance of the old season’s, we have disposed of a far greater proportion of our current season’s meat than at this time last year. This is reflected in the accounts.”

A proposal to alter the name of the company to the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, Ltd., will be put to an extraordinary meeting to be held after the annual meeting on February 14. At the extraordinary meeting new articles of association will also be submitted to shareholders.