Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 14 Dec 23

14th December 2023 Small Cap Team will take a break until Monday 8 January 2024 after this Friday 15th December. Merry Christmas to all our readers. @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be

New strategic plan to further improve margins

FY23 preliminary results delivered a strong turnaround in profitability on modestly lower revenues, highlighting action taken on costs and improved levels of utilisation. With a solid foundation now in place, we expect the new strategic plan to deliver an uplift in gross margins of c. 20% by the end of FY27. With plans in place to expand top line revenues plus a focus on added value expert services and related sectors, the outlook is bright and not yet reflected in the company’s current valuatio

Strategic refocus with return to profit confirmed

Driver’s results confirm a return to profitability, with adj. PBT increasing to £1.1m from a loss of £0.5m in FY22, with an improved Q4 performance after a slower Q3. FY24 has started well, with October and November both profitable months. A number of project wins, combined with a marked increase in enquiries, and a significantly reduced cost base (full benefits expected by end of Q1’24), positions Driver for another profitable year, at least in line with FY23. A number of strategic initiatives

Strategy on track, despite timing issues

Driver Group has issued a trading update earlier than normal, citing a weak Q3 (reflecting a combination of timing issues and the later Easter) as reasons. Nevertheless, Q4 has witnessed a return to more normal patterns of trading and coupled with the rationalisation programme yet to impact results and the pipeline of orders looking more encouraging, we think the medium-term outlook appears favourable. The further improvement in net cash levels provides the Board with opportunities, not least in

Outlook improving after mixed FY23 performance

Whilst there are no forecasts in the market, previous statements indicated strong foundations for a continued improvement in profitability. Driver’s pre-close update highlights that management still expects a return to profitability in FY23. However, adj. PBT is now expected to be slightly lower than at the half year (H1’23 adj. PBT: £0.7m). The statement highlights an improvement in trading in Q4 vs. Q3 and the FY24 performance should benefit from a number of recently secured significant commis

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 13 Jun 23

13th June 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment objecti

Return to profit in H1; Continued recovery anticipated

Management is focused on delivering a return to profitability in FY23. It has made good progress in H1, delivering a return to profit with adj. PBT of £0.7m (H1’22: £0.4m) compared to a loss of £1.4m in H2’22. This is a creditable performance, with the restructuring of the Middle East and APAC laying strong foundations for continued improvements in profitability. Supporting this ambition is the ongoing cost reduction measures, with some savings already realised and significant further savings an

Fires extinguished, recovery builds

The interim results from Driver Group were ahead of the profits guidance provided during the pre-close update in late April. Progress on costs has been made as the rationalisation programme has kicked in. The EuAm (Europe & the Americas) region has generated a strong performance, with revenues and profitability at record levels and there is further scope on margins and utilisation levels. The smaller regions produced an improved performance, with expectations of delivering profits for the full

Continued recovery in profit during Q2

Driver’s H1 update confirms a continued improvement in profitability. After achieving £250k of adj. PBT in Q1, the update indicates a Q2 outturn of at least £400k, making total profit for H1 of at least £650k. This compares to profit of £400k in H1’22 and a loss of £1.4m in H2’22. The significant improvement in performance was driven by a solid revenue performance (£24.2m in H1’23 vs. £24.4m in H1’22 and £22.5m in H2’22), as well as the benefit of recent restructuring efforts and resultant costs

Welcome news of progress

The pre-close trading update from Driver Group was encouraging, with static revenues (signifying rising productivity), improving profitability and margins, and the move into the black for the first time in two years within the Middle East region. Cash levels continued to improve, highlighting the collection of doubtful debts and higher profitability. We expect the solid foundations put in place by the management team over the last 12-18 months will provide a strong base from which to grow mean

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 23 Feb 23

23 February 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment objec

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Jersey Electricity - Decarbonisation fuelling growth

Jersey Electricity (JEL) is intensifying its focus on energy security and electrification across Jersey by creating opportunities to accelerate growth. It successfully navigated the volatile wholesale power price environment in 2020–23, shielding its customer base from the worst inflationary pressures. However, from 2025, as older, more favourable hedges expire, this protection will diminish. Therefore, we have marginally reduced our earnings forecasts to account for the increased exposure to wh

Zeus Top Picks for 2024 - 2023 review and outlook for 2024

On 9 January last year, we set out our ten top stock picks for 2023, for what turned out to be another relatively poor twelve months for UK equities due to two wars, stubbornly high inflation and further tightening of monetary policy. This was even as other major markets, such as the US, largely recovered in the year. In the 2023 calendar year, the AIM All-Share index fell 8.2% and is still 42% off its 2021 high. From the release of our 2023 top picks note, the average total return (assuming div