Intention to float by Gemfields Group. No Capital Raise. Currently listed on JSE. (GML:JNB) at circa £122m. The Group's key producing assets, the Kagem emerald mine in Zambia (believed to be the world's single largest producing emerald mine) and the Montepuez ruby mine in Mozambique (one of the most significant recently discovered ruby deposits in the world), are both expected to have long mine-lives with potential for expansion. Also owns the Faberge brand. Due Valentines Day 2020.
Companies: G4M AVCT NCC ITM EMIS GFIN IMMO LSAI ECSC GHE
Netflix is raising another US$2 billion in debt to fund additional content creation and other expenses, the company announced on Monday. The company routinely raises debt to help fuel its growing library of original TV shows and movies. The streaming giant offered US$2 billion in new debt in April after issuing another round of notes several months earlier. Netflix said it plans to use the proceeds to fund "Content acquisitions, production and development, capital expenditures, investments, working capital and potential acquisitions and strategic transactions.". We’re unsurprised and anticipate the competition will also up their game to capture market share – all the better for the localisation market.
Companies: 7DIG KAPE ZOO AMO AVST CNS DFX ECSC FLX IGP NCC OSI MIRA
Cloudflare, a California-based digital content delivery and Internet security company, raised its IPO price range this morning from a prior $10 to $12 interval to $12 to $14 per share. At its new prices, Cloudflare would be valued between $3.5 billion and $4.1 billion. Cloudflare's maximum IPO fund raise is now $563.5 million. Investors’ appetite for cloud offerings appears to remain robust. Ex- Oculus founder, Palmer Luckey’s new business, Anduril Industries, is building a virtual wall on the southern border of the US. His new venture is being valued at more than $1 billion in a new fundraising round, according to sources. Anduril describes itself as a company that "Invents and builds technology to secure America and its interests.". Virtual border controls feel like a natural evolution of physical barriers for a digital era. The Tokyo Game Show, Japan’s video gaming mega-conference, opened on Thursday with enthusiasts testing how ultra-high-speed 5G mobile data networks will impact the gaming experience ahead of the technology's commercial rollout in Japan in 2020. Game makers, related network developers, and esports promoters cite expect to benefit from nextgeneration wireless networks that are expected to allow players of increasingly popular online games to utilize faster downloads and smoother connections. 5G’s influence is only beginning to rise as coverage is rolled out.
Companies: CDM FDEV KAPE KWS SUMO TM17 AVST BIDS CNS DFX ECSC FLX GFIN IGP NCC OSI SOPH
Alan Howard’s push into crypto is a badly kept secret that appears to be crystallising into reality. In our view, the crypto space has undergone a very interesting transition from rampant retail speculation to, well, rampant retail speculation underpinned by a broad base of institutional interest. Google search volumes have fallen, transaction sizes appear to be escalating and the latest wave of equipment upgrades suggest consumer interest and potential to participate is now very low. Meanwhile, increased macro risk, currency controls and privacy concerns may be fuelling increased interest. We await further signs of whether we are at a turning point or whether this is (another) flash in the pan. Apple’s woes appear to be mounting as the group undergoes a difficult transition from a lifetime of focus on aesthetically pleasing hardware with a highly refined user experience, to a services focus. On one hand, the group’s key product the iPhone (which accounted for most revenues until very recently) is rapidly entering commoditised territory. Consumers have the option of a powerful and near fully-featured £160 generic Android handset or a cutting-edge iPhone for £1,000; for many, the choice is a simple one. The supply chain woes of having massive exposure to China in the context of the US-China trade war is also likely to weigh heavily on short term strategy. On the other hand, the group’s services are consumer focused and face strong competition from the likes of Amazon, Spotify, Microsoft and Netflix. If the thesis was to build the services on a firm foundation of the Apple hardware base, the cracks in security are worrying.
Companies: KAPE ARB AVST CNS DFX ECSC FLX IGP MMX NCC OSI SOPH TECH TEK
VMware said on Thursday it bought two providers of cloud security and cloud developer services in separate deals valued at about $5 billion, as it expands offerings for corporate clients. VMware bought Pivotal Software Inc in a $2.7 billion deal. Separately, VMware said it would buy software maker Carbon Black Inc for about $2 billion in cash.
Companies: CALL KAPE AVST CNS DFX ECK ECSC FLX IGP LOOP NCC NET OSI SOPH
Tencent shares slumped as much as 3.88% on Thursday after the Chinese technology giant missed analyst expectations, despite beating forecast on earnings. Revenue rose 21% year-on-year to 88.82 billion yuan. Profit attributable to shareholders beat analyst forecasts, rising 35% year-on-year to 24.14 billion yuan. The company's gaming division returned to growth, posting revenue of 27.3 billion yuan, up 8% year-on-year, with mobile games performing particularly well.
Companies: KAPE AVST BIDS CDM CNS DFX ECSC FLX FDEV GFIN IGP KWS NCC OSI SOPH SUMO TM17
British Airways said its flights were returning to normal after passengers had to endure cancellations, delays and long queues at London airports as the airline suffered its third major computer failure in a little more than two years. More than 60 flights to and from Heathrow and Gatwick were cancelled and more than 100 were delayed, according to the departure boards at the two airports.
Companies: KAPE AVST CNS DFX ECSC FLX IGP NCC OSI SOPH SWG
Capital One announced on Monday that a data breach identified earlier this month exposed personal information of its customers, including social security details and bank account numbers. The Virginia-headquartered bank said in a news release that about 140,000 Social Security numbers of its credit card customers and around 80,000 linked bank account numbers were compromised. In total, Capital One said, "This event affected approximately 100 million individuals in the United States and approximately 6 million in Canada." Qualcomm and Tencent said on Monday they will cooperate on projects that could include making the Chinese company's videogames play better on devices with Qualcomm chips, and create a 5G version of a Tencent-backed gaming phone. Microsoft yesterday announced the acquisition of BlueTalon, a start-up whose software can prevent people from accessing certain high-value data that companies keep. Over time, the acquisition could help Microsoft's campaign to get companies feeling more comfortable with the idea of keeping sensitive data in its Azure public cloud, which competes with Amazon and other companies.
Companies: KAPE AVST CNS DFX ECSC FLX IGP NCC OSI SOPH BIDS CDM GFIN FDEV KWS SUMO TM17 SWG
The Senate Banking Committee on Monday released the testimony of David Marcus, the head of Facebook's cryptocurrency projects ahead of his testimony Tuesday. In his prepared remarks, Marcus perfectly outlines the business model behind the social network’s upcoming Libra digital currency and its Calibra digital wallet. Microsoft might be the primary competitor for Slack, but the widespread adoption of Microsoft's software is not a major problem for Stewart Butterfield, co-founder and CEO of the messaging app. Last week, Microsoft said Teams had more daily active users than Slack. Cybersecurity company Symantec Corp has walked away from negotiations to sell itself to chipmaker Broadcom over price disagreements, people familiar with the matter said on Monday. Symantec's decision raises new questions over the future of the US antivirus software provider, which is looking for a new CEO and has been struggling to grow its business serving companies.
Australia's top three banks said on Thursday they have agreed to partner with IBM and shopping mall owner Scentre Group to test blockchain technology to digitize bank guarantees. The companies are exploring how to move away from paper-based bank guarantees to cut processing time and the risk of fraud, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Westpac Banking Corp and Commonwealth Bank of Australia said in a statement. The US government said on Wednesday it was reviewing licence requests from US companies seeking to export products to China's Huawei "Under the highest national security scrutiny" since the company is still blacklisted. In an email to Reuters, the Commerce Department said that as it reviewed applications, it was applying the "Presumption of denial" standard associated with Entity Listed companies, meaning applications are unlikely to be approved. Symantec shares surged more than 20% in extended trading on Tuesday after Bloomberg reported that Broadcom is in advanced talks to acquire the security software vendor. The deal is reported to be worth more than $16bn, implying an EV/Sales multiple of 3.40x (Bloomberg). Agreement on a deal was close but could be delayed until after the July 4 holiday, according to people briefed on the move.
Companies: KAPE AVST CNS DFX ECSC FLX IGP NCC OSI SOPH TECH AMO IQE SWG
Companies: KAPE AMO IQE AVST CNS DFX ECSC FLX IGP NCC OSI SOPH
boohoo.com (BOO LN) Lead indicators at PLT suggest strong growth ahead - Buy | Fulcrum Utility Services Limited (FCRM LN) Solid H1 performance with guidance reiterated | Futura Medical (FUM LN) H1’s highlight focus on MED2002: funding options being explored | NCC Group (NCC LN) Solid start to the year | RhythmOne (RTHM LN) Trimming numbers, but profits are leaping | Trifast (TRI LN) Solid growth, trading in line with FY19 expectations | Vectura Group (VEC LN) More conservative stance on flutiform®, but significant upside remains
Companies: BOO FCRM FUM NCC RTHM TRI VEC
Amino Technologies (AMO LN) Solid interims – outlook maintained | City of London Investment Group (CLIG LN) Earnings preview in line, FuM performance aided stronger sterling | Clinigen Group (CLIN LN) In line FY trading update & product acquisition | EMIS Group (EMIS LN) In line H1 update | Gateley (GTLY LN) FY results – continuing progress | NCC Group (NCC LN) Full year in-line, good cash generation | Scapa Group (SCPA LN) Q1 trading in line with expectations | SDL (SDL LN) Acquisition accelerates premium solutions strategy | Springfield Properties (SPR LN) Strong conclusion to FY18, Dawn integration on track
Companies: AMO CLIG CLIN EMIS GTLY NCC SCPA SPR
CentralNic-Schedule 1 from the business operating in proprietary retail platforms selling domain names and associated web presence services including hosting and email on a subscription basis, has acquired KeyDrive S.A which constitutes a RTO. Raising £24m at 52p, combined market cap of £88.7m Trackwise—established business that manufactures specialist products using printed circuit technology. Offer TBA. Due Late July Ovoca Gold (to be renamed Ovoca Bio PLC) - RTO of IVIX, a Russian company developing a drug candidate for the treatment of female sexual dysfunctions. No monies to be raised, market cap of £8.5m, due 30 July Nucleus Financial—independent wrap platform provider . FYDec17 revs £40.36m and PBT of £5.1m. Offer TBA. Due late July. Kropz PLC-Intention to float by the emerging plant nutrient producer with an advanced stage phosphate mining project in South Africa and exploration assets in West Africa
Companies: BVC NCC HNT AMO KMK SOM FLX IOG EMIS
Microsaic Systems (MSYS LN) Agreement with Unimicro Technologies | Motor Retail Upcoming registration data likely to weigh on share prices | NCC Group (NCC LN) Disposal of Web Performance | Summit Therapeutics (SUMM LN) £15m placing to advance ezutromid development | The PRS REIT (PRSR LN) Delivering as expected, driving towards target | WYG (WYG LN) FY18 outturn in line; tackling underperformance
Companies: MSYS NCC SUMM WYG
Research Tree provides access to ongoing research coverage, media content and regulatory news on NCC Group plc. We currently have 59 research reports from 7 professional analysts.
tinyBuild— a leading video games publisher and developer with global operations. tinyBuild's strategic focus is in creating longlasting IP by partnering with video games developers, establishing a stable platform on which to build multi-game and multimedia franchises is to join AIM. Offer details TBC. Due mid-March. AMTE Power, a developer and manufacturer of lithium-ion battery cells for specialist markets, announced its intention to seek admission to trading on AIM. Admission is expected to take place during March 2021. The Company intends to raise approximately £7m by way of a placing of new ordinary shares in the capital of the Company. Timing TBC. Samarkand Group Limited, the cross-border eCommerce technology and retail group opening up the world's largest market for brands and retailers, intends to IPO on the Apex Segment Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market. Admission is targeted for March 2021. NextEnergy Renewables to launch an IPO on the Main Market. NREN is a differentiated renewables investment Company that aims to capture the most attractive private renewables and energy transition infrastructure investment opportunities globally. Targeting a £300m raise. NREN is targeting total returns of 9-11 per cent. per annum (net of all fees and expenses but including the Target Dividend and capital appreciation) . The Company's target dividend yield for the first full financial year to 31 December 2022 is 5.5 pence. Due Early March 2021. Digital 9 Infrastructure launch an initial public offering on the Specialist Fund Segment of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, by way of an initial placing and offer for subscription for a target issue £400m. Digital 9 Infrastructure plc is a newly established, externally managed investment trust. The Company will invest in a range of digital infrastructure assets which deliver a reliable, functioning internet. The IPO Prospectus is expected to be published in March 2021. Team PLC announced their plans for an AIM IPO. Team owns Theta Enhanced Asset Management Ltd, trading as Team Asset Management. This is a Jersey-based active fund manager providing discretionary and advisory portfolio management services to private clients, trusts and charities. Assets under management were GBP291m in November, up from GBP140m in December 2019 . The Company is seeking to raise no less than £5m. The Placing will be priced on a pre-money valuation for the Company of £7m. Targeting March Admission. Virgin Wines UK Plc has out their plans for an AIM IPO. Virgin Wines is a direct-to-consumer online wine retailer that sells products to retail customers in the UK through two subscription schemes and a pay-as-you-go offering. The Group also sells a range of beers and spirits and operates a B2B sales channel for corporates. Anticipated mkt cap £110m. Raising £13m in new money and vendor sale of £34.9m . Due 2nd March. Fix Price announces its intention to float on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. Fix Price is one of the leading variety value retailers globally and the largest in Russia, with more than 4,200 stores. Fix Price has revenues of RUB 190.1bn, RUB 142.9bn and RUB 108.7bn for 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. Adjusted EBITDA for the same years was RUB 36.8bn, RUB 27.2bn and RUB 14.2bn, respectively. The Offer would consist of an offering of GDRs by certain existing shareholders of the Company. Great Point Entertainment Income Trust PLC announced its prospectus has been approved by the FCA. Great Point Entertainment Income Trust PLC is a newly established, externally managed closed-ended investment company. The Company will provide project finance to content makers and commissioners in the global television and film production industry via senior loans secured against pre-sold intellectual property (IP) rights. GPEIT's investment objective is to provide Shareholders with dividend income and modest capital growth through exposure to media content finance. According to media reports, Deliveroo, are expecting to release their IPO plans on 8th March. The company raised more than $180m in January with a valuation of more than $7bn.
Companies: ARS ESC AQX ARTL KRS KBT GRP BOOM CNS ANIC
VRE has formally reported its final results, following the summary outline presented in the January trading update. At that time, VRE also outlined and quantified its medium-term outlook and objectives for 2023 – 2025. In these results, VRE affirms the positioning of ENGAGE, its principal future revenue driver, as a comprehensive communications platform. VRE is to invest further in its business development and marketing, with a re-branding of the offering to its main user groups as ENGAGE Virtual Campus, ENGAGE Virtual Office and ENGAGE Virtual Events
Companies: VR Education Holdings PLC
The Panoply has announced the acquisition of Keep IT Simple (KITS), a provider of high value IT support and transformation services to public and private sector clients. KITS has a strong client base, including the Rural Payments Agency and DEFRA, and provides managed services notably in service integration and management. The current strength of The Panoply is in discovery, alpha and beta stages of projects and KITS will add the capability to run high value services thereby providing a complete end-toend offering. The combination with KITS will extend the average duration of contracts, with the enlarged group generating a higher proportion of revenues on a recurring basis, in addition to enabling The Panoply to bid for materially larger, multi-year projects. The group is paying £26m (30% cash, 70% shares) with no earnout but a £7m clawback if very demanding revenue targets are not met in 2022/23. With a March year end, there is limited impact on our fiscal 2021 estimate, but for FY22 we raise our PBT forecast by +48% to £8.4m, while DCe EPS is enhanced by +30% to 8.7p. We view the combination with KITS as a perfect strategic and operational fit, while the financial benefits are compelling. We raise our target price to 275p (was 235p) and retain our Buy recommendation.
Companies: Panoply Holdings Plc
Arcontech has reported a solid set of H1 21 results that provide a strong foundation for future growth. H1 revenue has increased +5% to £1.54m as 90% of Arcontech’s revenue is from recurring licence fees, and the October 2020 new tier one client win and tier one client contract upgrade provide £100k of additional annual recurring revenue, which offsets an existing client developing certain functionality in-house. The strength and flexibility of Arcontech’s solutions have enabled it to achieve these client wins despite a challenging H2 20 and H1 21 environment, where it has been difficult to finalise new sales due to limited customer contact and decisions being delayed due to remote working. In this environment, the two new additions to Arcontech’s salesforce since January 2020 have had a limited impacted on revenue, and the YoY opex impact leads to H1 adjusted EBIT declining 7% to £0.52m. However, Arcontech’s strengthened salesforce has been diligently establishing relationships with new potential customers, and as conditions return towards normal, we expect Arcontech will deliver new client wins that will benefit revised forecasts with a high incremental margin. Arcontech’s strong net cash of £5.0m continues to provide it with the flexibility to invest in accelerating its future growth through product development and sales, and we continue to expect it will grow its dividend by 10% at FY21 results. Although we reduce our forecasts to reflect the challenging sales environment, we look forward to Arcontech announcing new contract wins as it builds upon its strong foundations. On 23x 12m forward P/E with +5% NTM EPS growth and an EFCF yield of 4%, Arcontech trades at a discount to peers in financial information and the finnCap Next 50 on P/Es of 27-47x with NTM EPS growth of +6-15%, and EFCF yields of 2-4%.
Companies: Arcontech Group PLC
GB Group (GBG) has confirmed that trading since it last reported in December has been stronger than expected. Continued benefits from the US stimulus packages and higher volumes of bitcoin and retail share trading have boosted Identity volumes. We have upgraded our FY21 forecasts to reflect new company guidance, with FY22 and FY23 estimates substantially unchanged.
Companies: GB Group PLC
CAP-XX Ltd* (CPX.L, 11.0p/£48.6m) | ECSC Group plc* (ECSC.L, 75p/£7.5m) | MTI Wireless Edge Ltd* (MWE.L, 81p/£71.7m)
Companies: CPX ECSC MWE
An encouraging FY21 trading update highlights 1Spatial’s resilience in the face of challenging COVID conditions, with profits and cash ahead of our forecasts. Recent contracts demonstrate the momentum that is currently building in the business, and underpin the wider opportunities as global governments and enterprises increasingly invest in social, environmental and pandemic-led projects. We make no changes to forecasts today, but continue to believe that the shift in the financial model towards higher margin, recurring own-IP subscription sales can drive upgrades as well as a re-rating over the medium term. Our Target Price increases to 60p as we roll our 2x EV/Sales assumption to FY22.
Companies: 1Spatial Plc
Further media reports that Dr Martens, the British Boot brand is planning an IPO on the LSE. It is currently owned by PE group, Permira who is expected to sell down its stake at the IPO. March 2020 YE the group had revenues of £672m and EBITDA of £184m. Deal size TBC. Upon Admission to AIM, Nightcap will acquire The London Cocktail Club Limited (the "London Cocktail Club"), which is an award winning independent operator of ten individually themed cocktail bars in nine London locations and one location in Bristol. Offer TBC Due mid Jan. HSS Hire Group, HSS.L transfer from Main to Aim. Mkt Cap c. £70m. Recently raised £52.6m. Leading supplier of tool and equipment for hire in the United Kingdom and Ireland and has provided equipment hire services in the United Kingdom for more than 60 years, primarily focusing on the B2B market. Due 14 Jan. VH Global Sustainable Energy Opportunities plc, a closed-ended investment Company focused on making sustainable energy infrastructure investments, today announces intends to launch an initial public offering of shares on the Official List (Premium) of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. Due by Early Feb.
Companies: SAG DXRX CALL BBSN ASTO DNL FIPP IIG GROW TCN
Reverse Takeover by London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG.L) following the acquisition of Refinitiv in an all share transaction for a total enterprise value of approximately US$27 billion.
Companies: ADME ROCK ZPHR DKL VARE SMRT PTRO MHC BOO
AMTE Power, a developer and manufacturer of lithium-ion battery cells for specialist markets, announced its intention to seek admission to trading on AIM. Admission is expected to take place during March 2021. The Company intends to raise approximately £7m by way of a placing of new ordinary shares in the capital of the Company. Timing TBC. Samarkand Group Limited, the cross-border eCommerce technology and retail group opening up the world's largest market for brands and retailers, intends to IPO on the Apex Segment Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market. Admission is targeted for March 2021. Cellular Goods a UK-based provider of premium consumer products based on biosynthetic cannabinoids announced its intention to join the main market (standard) this Spring. Target valuation £20m raising c. £8m “to finalise the development and launch of a range of the Company's premium-quality consumer products based on biosynthetic cannabinoids, which is fully compliant under UK law.” NextEnergy Renewables to launch an IPO on the Main Market. NREN is a differentiated renewables investment Company that aims to capture the most attractive private renewables and energy transition infrastructure investment opportunities globally. Targeting a £300m raise. NREN is targeting total returns of 9-11 per cent. per annum (net of all fees and expenses but including the Target Dividend and capital appreciation) . The Company's target dividend yield for the first full financial year to 31 December 2022 is 5.5 pence. Due Early March 2021. Digital 9 Infrastructure launch an initial public offering on the Specialist Fund Segment of the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, by way of an initial placing and offer for subscription for a target issue £400m. Digital 9 Infrastructure plc is a newly established, externally managed investment trust. The Company will invest in a range of digital infrastructure assets which deliver a reliable, functioning internet. The IPO Prospectus is expected to be published in March 2021. Team PLC announced their plans for an AIM IPO. Team owns Theta Enhanced Asset Management Ltd, trading as Team Asset Management. This is a Jersey-based active fund manager providing discretionary and advisory portfolio management services to private clients, trusts and charities. Assets under management were GBP291m in November, up from GBP140m in December 2019 . The Company is seeking to raise no less than £5 million. The Placing will be priced on a pre-money valuation for the Company of £7m. Targeting March Admission. Virgin Wines UK Plc recently set out their plans for an AIM IPO. Virgin Wines is a direct-to-consumer online wine retailer that sells products to retail customers in the UK through two subscription schemes and a pay-as-you-go offering. The Group also sells a range of beers and spirits and operates a B2B sales channel for corporates. Deal details TBC but media reports suggest a £100m valuation. Targeting 2nd March Admission Fix Price announces its intention to float on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. Fix Price is one of the leading variety value retailers globally and the largest in Russia, with more than 4,200 stores. Fix Price has revenues of RUB 190.1bn, RUB 142.9bn and RUB 108.7bn for 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. Adjusted EBITDA for the same years was RUB 36.8bn, RUB 27.2bn and RUB 14.2bn, respectively. The Offer would consist of an offering of GDRs by certain existing shareholders of the Company. Great Point Entertainment Income Trust PLC announced its prospectus has been approved by the FCA. Great Point Entertainment Income Trust PLC is a newly established, externally managed closed-ended investment company. The Company will provide project finance to content makers and commissioners in the global television and film production industry via senior loans secured against pre-sold intellectual property (IP) rights. GPEIT's investment objective is to provide Shareholders with dividend income and modest capital growth through exposure to media content finance. According to media reports, Deliveroo, are expecting to release their IPO plans on 8th March. The company raised more than $180m in January with a valuation of more than $7bn.
Companies: CCS OKYO SML BEG SBIZ GDP SGM SEN AMO KZG
ZOO Digital is continuing to benefit from a number of positive trends and industry shifts, such asthe launch of Disney’s “Disney+ Star” channels across multiple geographies, which UK-based investors will see available this week. This note contains commentary on Disney and Netflix – two of the largest market participants – as well as detail on the way the supplier base is evolving (further consolidation is under way). We also consider the likely “way out” for the industry as lockdowns ease globally and the significant backlog of content is released into production.
Companies: ZOO Digital Group plc
Companies: IRR MKA GHH LEK POW KRM DRUM ODX FA/ ALBA
With FY20 results in line with the recent trading update, the focus is on the “growing number of new business opportunities in the pipeline”. The remote/hybrid working environment has increased the complexity of assessing human digital experience and made it even more important to monitor employee well-being and productivity. Initial deployments have started under the new Professional Services business model with two major new partners having recently come on stream (Oracle and a US Computer company). The real prize is the 4m seats identified by the partners for the new product set since August. On conservative assumptions we believe that’s a recurring annual TAM of over £100m. Needless to say this is why the company and stock continue to merit attention.
Companies: Actual Experience plc
FY20 revenue and earnings are as flagged in the January trading update, with adj. EPS and DPS slightly ahead of our forecast. Quartix has performed very well in an extremely difficult year of lockdowns affecting its SME customers across all geographic regions. Revenue increased slightly YoY (as usual, Fleet growth offset by Insurance decline), while a deferred insurance revenue release and greater use of self-install devices improved margins and profit YoY. As usual, cash conversion was good and together with FY19 cash retained during COVID, net cash of £10.6m at YE means a bumper final dividend. We make no change to forecasts, expecting investment in customer acquisition in FY21 to lower margins but drive a return to long-term growth from FY22. We raise our TP to 500p.
Companies: Quartix Holdings Plc
Instem has made the first acquisition post the fundraising in July. It is paying up to £8.5m to acquire The Edge Software Consultancy, which supplies study management and data collection solutions into the drug discovery market, an area highly complementary to Instem’s existing offering. As such, we see a number of opportunities to drive revenue synergies by leveraging Instem’s global infrastructure and sales & marketing capabilities. We upgrade our FY21 and FY22 EPS forecasts by 8% and 15% respectively and expect further M&A activity to drive additional upgrades in due course. Instem is one of our Best Ideas for 2021 and we see the acquisition as adding to an already positive organic growth outlook.
Companies: Instem plc