Ellies Holdings Limited has announced significant financial losses for the six months ended 31 October 2023. The company’s unaudited condensed consolidated interim results reveal a stark downturn in performance compared to the same period in the previous year, prompting the initiation of business rescue proceedings.

Financial Downturn

The company reported a decrease in revenue by 30.6% to R353.1 million compared to R508.9 million in the first half of the previous financial year. Additionally, the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) plunged significantly, resulting in a loss of R51.8 million, a stark contrast to the R30 million loss reported in the corresponding period.

Increased Losses

The losses continued to mount as the company reported a loss after tax of R106.5 million, marking a substantial increase of 205.2% from the previous year’s loss of R34.9 million. The total comprehensive loss also soared by 202.6% to R106.5 million compared to R35.2 million in the first half of the prior financial year.

Earnings Per Share and Equity

The loss per share saw a dramatic rise of 204.8%, reaching 13.23 cents compared to 4.34 cents in the previous year. Similarly, the headline loss per share increased by 189.7% to 13.27 cents from 4.58 cents. Furthermore, the net asset value (NAV) per share and net tangible asset value per share both decreased by 159.3%, resulting in negative equity per share of 7.3 cents, down from 12.3 cents in the prior period.

Business Rescue Proceedings

In response to the financial challenges, Ellies Holdings Limited and its main operating subsidiary, Ellies Electronics Proprietary Limited, commenced business rescue proceedings on 31 January 2024. John Evans was appointed as the business rescue practitioner for both entities on 1 February 2024.