Annual Report 2010-2011 - Colombo Stock Exchange

Annual Report of the Board of Directors
The Directors of Richard Pieris and Company PLC are pleased
to present to their members the Annual Report together with
the audited financial statements of its Group and the Company,
for the year ended 31 March 2011.
The Directors approved the financial statements on 27th May
2011.
Principal Activities & Operational Review
Richard Pieris and Company PLC is the holding company
that owns, directly and indirectly, investments in a number of
companies constituting the Richard Pieris Group. The principal
activities of the Group are described under the Group Structure
on pages 47 - 50 of the report.
A review of the Group’s business and its performance
during the year, with comments on financial results and
future developments, is contained in the Chairman and
CEO’s Review, Sector Reviews and the Financial Review of
this Annual Report. The measures taken by the Company
to manage its risks are detailed in the report titled Risk
Management on pages 41 - 44 of this report.
Future Developments
The Group intends to continue to pursue a strategy of focusing
on its core business activities. In order to achieve this, the
Group will concentrate on enhancing the performance of it’s
retail, plantation, tyre, rubber and plastics business sectors.
Further information on future developments is provided in the
Chairman and CEO’s Review and Sector Review of this report.
Group Revenue
The turnover of the Group was Rs. 27.2 bn. A detailed analysis
of the Group’s turnover identifying the contributions from
different sectors is given in Note 21 to the Financial Statements.
The Group’s exports from Sri Lanka were Rs. 2.4 bn. Trade
between Group companies is conducted at fair market prices.
Results & Dividends
Details relating to the Group profits are given in the table on
Page 53. The Group reported a Profit after tax amounting to Rs.
2.1 bn.
The Directors recommend a cash dividend amounting to Rs.
194 mn to all shareholders at the rate of Rs. 0.10 per ordinary
share and subject to approval of the shareholders payable on
or before 8th July 2011. The dividends represent a redistribution
of dividends received by the company and therefore will not be
subject to the 10% withholding tax otherwise applicable.
Group Investments
The Group did not incur any expenditure on investments other
than investments in subsidiary companies during the year.
Details of this are given in Note 5 to Financial Statements.
Property, Plant & Equipment
Capital expenditure on property, plant, equipment and workin-progress
incurred during the year under review amounted
to Rs. 1.2 bn. Information relating to this is given in Note 3
to the Financial Statements. Land is included as described
in Accounting Policies in the Financial Statements. Capital
expenditure approved and contracted for after the year-end
is given in Note 32 to the Financial Statements. The value of
property stated in the Financial Statements is not in excess of
its current market values.
Freehold Property
A description of the property owned by the Group is shown
under the Group Real Estate portfolio on page 108.
Stated Capital
The stated capital of the Company as at 31 March 2011 was
Rs. 1.62 bn. The details of the stated capital is given in Note 9
to the Financial Statements.
Reserves
Total Group Reserves as at 31st March, 2011 amount to Rs. 3.4
bn. (Rs. 2.2 bn as at 31 March 2010). The details of which are
given in Notes 10, 11 and 12 to the Financial Statements.
Corporate Donations
Donations made by the Company and Group to charitable
organisations amounted to Rs. 0.22 mn and Rs. 4.1 mn
respectively.
Richard Pieris and Company PLC | Annual Report 2010/2011 52