NSV broadly flat, reflecting continued outperformance against the majority of our end-markets
Continuing subdued consumer confidence impacted end-market demand
Strong adjusted operating cash conversion representing a ratio of 99.7% of EBITDA; improvement of 22.8pts
Net debt down 33% to £96.5m; Net debt to EBITDA ratio of 1x
Full year dividend increased by 4.2% to 8.60p
Pricing remained stable and market share largely maintained or increased
Ongoing focus on cost control and efficiency improvements as we continue to streamline the business
Continued investment in long-term growth drivers; R&D spend maintained at approximately 4% of NSV
Commenting on the Group's results Steve Corbett, Chief Executive, said:
"This is a solid performance in a challenging trading environment for Alent in its first year as a standalone company. We have largely maintained or increased our market share in most product lines, with NSV broadly flat, demonstrating our ability to outperform the majority of our end-markets which saw a general decline in 2013.
This resilience has been underpinned by our focus on high unit count applications which drive demand for our products. Our strong relationships with OEMs, continued R&D investment to support innovation and the production of higher margin products remain key to our strategy. This coupled with our global footprint, strong cost control, price stability and financial strength will continue to drive the future performance of our business."
