London (UK) and Johannesburg (South Africa), 15 May 2008 - Dimension Data Holdings plc (‘Dimension Data’ or the ‘Group’) today announced its results for the six months ended 31 March 2008.  The results have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards.

Highlights

·         Robust top line performance – revenues up by 23% to $2.2 billion

·         Good revenue growth in all regions, but notably Asia (+30%⁽²⁾), Middle East and Africa (+20%⁽²⁾) and Americas (+24%⁽²⁾)

·         Strong revenue growth from all lines of business - Network Integration up 17% ⁽²⁾, Security up 36% ⁽²⁾ and Converged Communications up 21% ⁽²⁾

·         Operating profit ⁽¹⁾ up by 55% to $85.0 million with improved margins in all regions

·         Earnings per share ⁽¹⁾ increased 42% to 3.4 cents

Notes:

(1)                 Before exceptional items.  See reconciliation in Note 3 to the condensed financial statements.

(2)                 Before eliminating intercompany revenue and adjusted for the impact of currency movements and the disposal of the Group’s Swedish operations in the prior year.

Operational Highlights

To review the underlying performance of the business, the following adjustments have been made below:

·         Growth rates, unless otherwise indicated, are in relation to H1 2007, are calculated before eliminating inter-company revenue and are adjusted for (1) the impact of currency movements (2)  the disposal of the Group’s Swedish operations in the prior year.  

·         Unless specifically indicated, exceptional items are excluded from the analysis.

Revenue for the six months to 31 March 2008 was $2,171 million, an increase of 16.3% over the prior period.   Revenues from the Americas, Asia and Middle East & Africa were particularly strong, and Services grew by 17.8%.  The Group’s six, global lines of business contributed well, with Network Integration’s increase of 16.6% continuing to outperform broader market growth.

Gross profit for the period was $462.2 million, up 19.2%, reflecting a 0.5% improvement in gross margin to 21.3%.  Product and Services margins were both firmer, while an improved Services to Product mix also contributed.

Overheads were contained in relation to revenue growth, increasing by 14.5% to $377.2 million.  Of this, variable overheads (including bonuses and sales commission) were up by 19.3% to $58.9 million while fixed overheads grew by 13.6% to $318.3 million. 

Operating profit was strongly up on the prior period to $85.0 million - a year on year increase of 46.0% - and operating margin improved from 3.1% to 3.9%.

The share of results from associates increased to $3.8 million from $3.1 million, while net interest costs reduced to $7.4 million.

The Group tax charge was $22.9 million, an effective tax rate on profit before tax of 26.6% (2007: 28.6%).  This improvement was mainly the result of improved profitability from those jurisdictions within the Group which are not currently paying tax.    

Earnings per share were 3.4 cents per share, an increase of 41.7%.

Strong Execution across all Areas

Commenting on Dimension Data’s results, CEO Brett Dawson said, “We drive growth from three areas:  our regions, lines of business, and services.  During the period, the Group achieved a successful performance against all three.  All regions performed well with revenue growth and improved operating margins in all three.  We achieved double digit growth across all our lines of business with substantial market share gains in Network Integration and Security.  Our services growth was strong.”

Europe

Europe recorded revenue growth of 11.6% and gross margin improved slightly to 20.5%, Overhead growth was 10.5% and as a result operating profit expanded from $5.0 million in the prior period to $7.5 million.

Russell Bolan, CEO, Dimension Data Europe said, “We are pleased with Europe’s double digit growth in a climate of ongoing industry consolidation and some weakness in the financial services sector.

“In our six lines of business Security, Converged Communications, Data Centre and Storage (DCS), and Customer Interactive Solutions (CIS) exceeded budget, and we expect this trend to continue in the next six months. In addition, our Services revenues were up by 15.1% reflecting growth in both Managed and Professional Services.”

Turning to the future, Bolan commented, “European economic institutions still forecast GDP growth of around 2.2% for 2008, albeit slightly lower than previously forecasted. In addition, The Pound and Euro have remained strong against the dollar working to our advantage. This, coupled with the region’s healthy pipeline and order intake indicates we will continue to show robust growth across most of the Group’s European countries.

Future Outlook

Dawson is optimistic about both the outlook for the second half of the year and the Group’s longer term prospects.

“Building on our strong progress in H1, the key drivers for our business growth are in place.  While recognising the recent turmoil in financial services, we are optimistic about the remainder of the financial year.  We believe the economic slowdown in several major markets is having some impact on IT spending.”

“However, Dimension Data is in a strong strategic and operational position, with the benefit of a robust balance sheet.  Our strategy remains clear and unchanged and we continuously review our operational plans to adapt to developing circumstances.  We continue to see solid demand in the market for our industry relevant solutions and service offerings and remain confident that the Group is well positioned to drive continued profitable growth.”

A propos de Dimension Data

Avec plus de 10 000 collaborateurs dans plus de 40 pays au monde pour 3,8 milliards de dollars en 2007, Dimension Data (Code LSE : DDT), fournisseur spécialisé de solutions et de services informatiques, aide ses clients à concevoir, déployer et exploiter leurs infrastructures informatiques. Dimension Data applique son expertise dans les domaines des réseaux IP, de la téléphonie et la collaboration, de la sécurité, et des technologies dédiées aux centres de contacts. Dimension Data met également au service de ses clients ses qualités uniques de conseil, d'intégration et de gestion pour leur fournir des solutions complètes et personnalisées allant de l'intégration traditionnelle à des offres de service clef en main de multi-sourcing.

Contact presse :

Vanessa Perez

Point Virgule - Relations Presse

+33 (0)1 73 79 50 74 /  06 09 38 63 00

vperez@pvirgule.fr