Financial position
Liquidity
In the period under review cash flows from operating activities in the continuing operations fell from € 83.0 million to € 65.5 million. This was primarily due to significantly lower net profit from the continuing operations. Cash flows from investment activities significantly improved in the first half-year from € –21.0 million to € 60.7 million. Here, fixed term deposits matured. In the first half-year the main influencing factor on the cash flow from the financing activities was the distribution of the dividend amounting to € 30.2 million in June 2009. In the same period last year the dividend payment amounted to € 49.0 million. In addition, in the first half-year of 2008 MLP purchased its own shares to the value of € 11.5 million. Overall, cash flow from financing activities improved from € –60.4 million to € –30.2 million.
At the end of the first half year the Group’s total liquid funds stood at € 188.3 million. The liquidity situation therefore remains very good. The Group has adequate liquidity available. In addition to the liquid funds, MLP also has access to free credit lines.
Consolidated cash flow statement for the period from January 1 to June 30, 2009
(continuing operations)
| All figures in € million | 1st half year 2009 | 1st half year 2008 |
|---|---|---|
| Cash flows from operating activities | 65.5 | 83.0 |
| Cash flows from investing activities | 60.7 | –21.0 |
| Cash flows from financing activities | –30.2 | –60.4 |
| Changes in cash and cash equivalents | 96.0 | 1.6 |
| Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period | 38,0 | 36.6 |
| Inflows/outflows due to divestments | 0 | –7.7 |
| Cash and cash equivalents at the end of period | 134.0 | 30.5 |
Capital measures
No significant capital measures were undertaken during the period under review. Through the exercising of convertible debentures, the number of shares increased slightly by 863 units and the equity capital rose by € 5 thsd.
Investments financed from cash flow
After having invested € 6.4 million – allocated mainly to the financial services segment - during the first half-year of 2008, the investment sum during the period under review was significantly lower and amounted to € 3.0 million. Around 81% of the investment was again allocated to the financial services segment. Here we continue to invest primarily in the improvement of IT support for client consulting activities and all relevant client care processes. However, our IT systems have now reached a level of performance that is regarded as exemplary in our industry, which is why the investment volume in this year is significantly lower. All investments were financed from current cash flows.