Sharp decline in Neal & Massy’s income

(Trinidad Guardian) Neal & Massy Holding’s total comprehensive income for the year ended September 2011 plunged to TT$4.6 million from TT$379.6 million for the company’s 2010 financial year. The Port-of-Spain-based, publicly listed conglomerate saw its revenues increase by TT$528 million or by 6.6 per cent, from TT$7.9 billion to TT$8.5 billion. Its profit from continuing operations amounted dropped from TT$533 million in 2010 to TT$444 million in 2011, while its loss from discontinued operations increased from TT$227 million in 2010 to TT$473 million in 2011. This caused the conglomerate to declare a loss of TT$29.4 million in 2011, compared with a profit of TT$306 million in 2010.

The losses on discontinued operations are related to the group’s decision to sell Almond Resorts Inc, its hotel operations in Barbados and St Lucia. In the director’s statement accompanying the Neal & Massy result, which were published last year, the company said that in anticipation of losses on the disposal of these assets, “the Group has also made a TT$270 million provision against the carrying values of the Almond investment, which includes the TT$40 million general provision that was booked in the third quarter of 2011. As a result of these measures, losses from discontinued operations, including current losses from Almond hotels, reached TT$305 million.” The conglomerate owns 52 per cent of Almond Resorts and 49.9 per cent of Casuarina Holdings.

According to the financial report: “For 2011, the results and financial position of the following investments are being presented as discontinued operations or held for sale: Almond Resorts Inc; Casuarina Holdings Inc; Nealco Datalink Ltd; Cool Petroleum Ltd; Lazy Lagoon Holdings Ltd. The financial report also stated: “The assets and liabilities related to our Almond Resorts Investments, have been presented as held for sale, following a decision by the Parent Company Board to significantly reduce its shareholding in Almond Resorts.

“The restructuring is a series of three transactions where there would be an outright sale of properties in St Lucia and Almond Casuarina, while the shareholding in the public company, Almond Resorts Inc would reduce from a 51 per cent subsidiary to an available for sale investment.” “The Group expects to complete these transactions in 2012.” The consolidated financial statements for the group were published on the local stock exchange’s Web site yesterday. The group also saw its non-current assets decline by nearly TT$1 billion as they slid from TT$4.3 billion in 2010 to TT3.3 billion in 2011. Its total assets amounted to TT$8.2 billion in 2011, down slightly from TT$8.3 billion the previous year.