Huveaux has reported dreadful preliminary results for 2007. Revenue grew by just 2% and profits collapsed to 400k from £2.3m. A million of this was exceptional restructuring costs and costs of the aborted sales process. Nevertheless this once hot and aquisitive group is now embattlled in trying to prove it has something worthwhile to offer shareholders.
It has suffered badly from the collapse in Pharma advertising in France and it could be argued not their fault, but this cannot disguise that Gerry Murray (pictured looking wierdly youthful), the CEO has a tough time ahead of him. Huveaux has declared that it will not make any further acquisitions for the time being as it hunkers down and tries to work out how to make a profit from what its got. They say it will be more events and more online, but they don't say how. They do say this though,
"The trading environment for all media companies in 2008 is predicted to be challenging. Whilst much of our advertising is ‘defensive’ in nature, we will not be entirely immune to an economic downturn .We can expect very little in the way of growth in advertising".
So no growth in what they have - and no acquisitions. Its tough out there.
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