(3) Adjustments to the accounting policies
The accounting policies applied are the same as those used in the financial year 2008, with the following exceptions:
In view of further concentration on its core market Germany, in the fourth quarter of the financial year 2008 the management devised to sell MLP Finanzdienstleistungen AG, Vienna, Austria. In the third quarter 2009, MLP reached agreement in principle regarding the sale of its business unit in Austria to Aragon AG. The transaction is subject to the approval by the cartel authorities as well as the financial market supervisory authorities in Austria. Beyond this the decision to close the dependent branch in the Netherlands was taken in the second quarter 2009.
For this reason the revenues and expenses of MLP Finanzdienstleistungen AG, Vienna, Austria, and the branch of MLP Finanzdienstleistungen AG in the Netherlands were reclassified to the earnings from discontinued operations. The previous year’s figures were adjusted accordingly. The reporting changes have no effect on net profit or earnings per share.
The table below illustrates the effects of the changes in the accounting policies on the previous year’s figures:
| All figures in €‘000 | 9 months 2008 adjusted |
9 months 2008 as reported |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues | 378,058 | 385,501 | –7,443 | ||
| Other revenues | 28,003 | 28,269 | –267 | ||
| Total revenues | 406,061 | 413,770 | –7,709 | ||
| Commission expenses | –130,311 | –133,280 | 2,969 | ||
| Interest expenses | –15,948 | –15,948 | – | ||
| Personnel expenses | –79,692 | –85,322 | 5,630 | ||
| Depreciation and amortisation | –14,730 | –14,886 | 156 | ||
| Other operating expenses | –126,753 | –129,427 | 2,674 | ||
| Earnings from shares accounted for using the equity method | 564 | 564 | – | ||
| Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) | 39,191 | 35,471 | 3,720 | ||
| Other interest and similar income | 3,790 | 3,802 | –12 | ||
| Other interest and similar expenses | –12,803 | –12,803 | – | ||
| Finance cost | –9,013 | –9,001 | –12 | ||
| Earnings before taxes (EBT) | 30,178 | 26,470 | 3,708 | ||
| Income taxes | –11,337 | –11,340 | 3 | ||
| Earnings from continuing operations | 18,841 | 15,130 | 3,711 | ||
| Earnings from discontinued operations | –4,066 | –355 | –3,711 | ||
| Net profit | 14,775 | 14,775 | – | ||
| Earnings per share in € | |||||
| from continuing operations | |||||
| basic | 0.19 | 0.15 | |||
| diluted | 0.19 | 0.15 | |||
| from continuing and discontinued operations | |||||
| basic | 0.15 | 0.15 | |||
| diluted | 0.15 | 0.15 | |||
In the financial year 2009, the revised IAS 1 “Presentation of Financial Statements” is to be used for the first time. IAS 1 (revised) extends the profit and loss account to include a transition of profit/loss to the overall net earnings with reporting of the components of the other earnings (statement of comprehensive income). This also changes the presentation of the statement of changes in equity. In the statement of changes in equity, transactions with owners are shown separately. Profit/Loss and other earnings are apportioned to the individual equity capital components. The previous year’s figures were adjusted accordingly. Neither net profit nor earnings per share have changed as a result of this changed presentation.
Furthermore, in the financial year 2009 the following new or revised standards are to be used for the first time:
- IFRS 3 and IAS 27 “Business combinations Phase II”,
- IAS 39 “Financial Instruments Recognition and Measurements Eligible Hedged Items”,
- IAS 39 “Reclassification of Financial Assets: Effective Date and Transition”,
- IFRIC 12 “Service concession arrangements”,
- IFRIC 15 “Agreements for the construction of real estate”,
- IFRIC 16 “Hedges of a net investment in a foreign operation”.
The first-time use of these standards was not relevant for MLP at September 30, 2009.