Page 16 - Australasian Paint & Panel Magazine Mar-Apr 2021

16
News • In Focus
PAINT&PANEL MARCH / APRIL 2021
WWW.PAINTANDPANEL.COM.AU
NEW LEADERSHIP
shares less than a month before what the smash repairs company has deemed market-sensitive updates.”
AT AMA GROUP
An article from ABC News in Septem- ber 2020 referred to a report on ASX com- panies receiving JobKeeper payments. It listed those companies that had report- edly used it to pay executives – with AMA Group among them – saying the company paid $90,000 to KMPs (key management personnel, but not the CEO).
FIRST HALF FINANCIAL RESULTS
AMA Group published its first half fi- nancial results on 24 February with another freeze on dividends for share holders. The report stated that going forward there would be a ‘transition in leadership style – from entrepreneurial and big picture to operations’.
New CEO Bizon also cited ‘small inde- pendent panel businesses impacted by COVID-19 related trading conditions,’ as an ‘opportunity for industry consol- idation increasing’ and predicted growth in the Capital SMART network.
The reported profit was $7.098m against a background of $30.7m received for JobKeeper and $70m from the sale of AMA’s aftermarket arm ACAD. Total group revenue and other income was $434.2m with net debt at 31 December 2020 of $151.1m.
AMA reported vehicle panel repairs have seen an average decline in volume of 27% compared to the previous corre- sponding period (PCP). The group, ex- cluding Victoria, experienced an aver- age decline in volume of 16% to PCP.
Individual state impacts with a decline in volume were as follows: VIC 48%, NSW 18%, NZ 17%, QLD 15%, WA 12%, SA 8% and ACT 7%. This was attributed to COVID -19 lockdowns. No mention was made of increased competition in the marketplace such as the rapidly expand- ing Repairhub or Motorone networks.
The heavy vehicle division contribut- ed 15% of AMA’s EBITDA. Normalisa- tions of $9.4m were reported for the SMART paint agreement termination fee to PPG as the group changed suppliers to Glasurit. Also included in the reporting period was a $7m EBITDIA contribution from ACAD before it was sold.
Share value declined after the an- nouncement was made, indicating market disappointment.
IT’S BEEN A TURBULENT TIME AT AMA GROUP WITH A NUMBER OF ACCUSATIONS OVER FINANCIAL IRREGULARITIES AND LACKLUSTRE HALF YEAR RESULTS.
A
NDY HOPKINS RESIGNED AS
CEO of AMA Group on 31
January and subsequently his position on the board. He is also assumed to have sold his 5.5% share of the company. These events followed an independent investi- gation of the company’s finances by McGrath Nicol after a company whistle- blower suggested financial irregularities at the group. Hopkins has been replaced by Carl Bizon, a former non-executive
director of AMA since February 2020. Hopkins, 53, was accused of obtaining expenses and bonuses that were unau- thorised by the AMA board, a charge he denies. Hopkins’ lawyer conceded the CEO had wrongly used AMA’s credit card on personal expenses three times over three years worth $4313.49 in Royal Perth Yacht Club membership fees and Emirates airfares of $1979.08. Hopkins has other ties to AMA including rental properties used by the group that were paid more than $2m last financial year
in rent and outgoing expenses. Hopkins’ lawyer countered that AMA board member Simon Moore levelled the accusations against Hopkins after ‘significant shareholder disquiet about the $4.4m payment Mr Moore has de- manded in 2019.’ The accounts show Colinton Capital, founded by Moore, earned $3.15m in fees from AMA for ‘fi- nancial advisory and transactional ser- vices’ for the acquisition of Capital
Andy Hopkins has left the group.
SMART and ‘the related equity raise and debt refinance’.
When Hopkins departed as a director he indicated that he could still agitate for a shake-up by “exploring options” with his 5.5 per cent shareholding. However it appears Hopkins divested himself of all shares on 5 February. A line of 37 million AMA shares crossed the market that day at 65c per share (a $24million transac- tion). The Australian Financial Review speculated that this share block matches the former CEO’s stake. The AMA board have said that they are pursuing Hopkins to recover around $1m.
There have been articles in the nation- al press previously hinting at unconven- tional practices. The Financial Review wrote an article in July 2020 with the headline, AMA director Simon Moore’s timing raises eyebrows which said: “On three occasions this year, he's bought