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(Alliance News) - The following is a round-up of updates by London-listed companies, issued on Monday and not separately reported by Alliance News:
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CentralNic Group PLC - London-based domain name registry and registrar services firm - 2020 revenue more than doubles to USD241.2 million from USD109.2 million in 2019, though pretax loss widens to USD9.4 million from USD6.6 million. Net finance costs surge to USD9.8 million from USD3.9 million. "In 2020 CentralNic delivered higher revenue than for the whole of the last five years combined and reported 9% revenue growth on a pro forma basis. Management is pleased with the achievement of strong results in 2020, in line with management expectations," says CentralNic. Adds that pipeline of future deals remains strong with net debt level "comfortable".
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Augean PLC - Wetherby, West Yorkshire-based waste management company - Says 2020 revenue down at GBP91.7 million from GBP107.1 million in 2019, though swings to pretax profit of GBP16.4 million from GBP15.3 million loss as it takes GBP1.8 million landfill tax assessment credit versus charge of GBP26.2 million the year before. Says pleasing start to trading has been made in the first few weeks of 2021 with results in line with expectations. The board will not pay a dividend for 2020 but is proposing a return to paying dividends in 2021.
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Global Invacom Group Ltd - Singaporean provider of satellite communications equipment and electronics - Revenue for 2020 falls 23% to USD103.1 million but swings to pretax profit of USD3.1 million from loss of USD12.5 million in 2019. Cost of sales falls 30% while administrative expenses fall 16%. What's more, in 2019 the company had recognised impairment costs in the Shanghai manufacturing facility following the relocation of its operations to third-party contract manufacturers. "Despite the many headwinds faced during 2020, our strategic direction remains unchanged, and, whilst early in the year, we are well positioned for a constructive 2021, as the global economy recovers and the demand for uninterrupted connectivity and data expands," says Executive Chair Tony Taylor.
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Croma Security Solutions Group PLC - AIM listed total security services provider - Reports revenue of GBP16.4 million for six months to December 31, slipping 5.7% from GBP17.4 million a year ago. As a result, pretax profit falls 31% to GBP479,000 from GBP690,000. Says this was a "good performance in a challenging period for all operating divisions". Notes that positive trading patterns have continued into the second half of the year, and it is well-placed for a "satisfactory" full-year result. "Reflecting the current environment and the continued uncertainties in connection to the global pandemic, the board has decided not to pay an interim dividend and will instead decide on the level of the final dividend payment for this financial year on completion of the 12-month period," firm says.
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Craneware PLC - financial software provider - Revenue for first half ended December 31 is USD38.0 million, up 5.8% from USD35.9 million a year ago, with pretax profit rising 3.1% to USD9.9 million from USD9.6 million. Says positive performance in first half provides a "strong foundation" for future growth. "The first half's positive sales performance has continued with ongoing pipeline growth, a growing Trisus customer base, expanding offering and clear market need. While cognisant of the challenges presented by the macro environment, we are confident in the continued positive performance of the business and accelerated growth rates moving forward," firm says.
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AFC Energy PLC - provider of hydrogen power generation technologies - Posts pretax loss of GBP4.8 million for financial year ended October 31, wider than loss of GBP3.6 million reported the year before. No revenue either year. Says confirmed initial order book of GBP1.1m at year end, with strong pipeline of commercial orders across prospective partners and distributors currently under development. Year-end cash balance is GBP31.6 million, versus just GBP1.6 million a year ago. "Our outlook for the coming year is one of confidence, with both governmental policies and industry sentiment driving sustainable change in our key target markets. The company's stronger balance sheet position enables us to invest in our people, products and technology and we therefore expect cash burn to increase in the coming year to deliver and grow our order book," says Chief Executive Adam Bond. Adds that John Rennocks intends to retire as non-executive chair, and to step down from the board, following the company's upcoming annual general meeting.
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Ruffer Investment Co Ltd - makes actively managed investments, mainly in conventional assets, without reference to benchmarks - Says net asset value per share 260.56p at end of December versus 245.81p at end of June, giving net asset total return of 6.4%. "The 2020 calendar year share price return of 17.8%, and NAV return of 13.5%, contributed to a compound annual NAV return of 7.5% since the company listed in 2004, compared to 6.8% per annum from the FTSE All-Share Total Return Index," Ruffer notes.
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MTI Wireless Edge Ltd - Israel-based communication and radio frequency solutions firm - Revenue in 2020 grows 2% to USD40.9 million form USD40.0 million in 2019, with pretax profit up 19% to USD4.1 million, helped by the "increasing scale of the group and lower expenditure associated with reduced travel and marketing costs". MTI comments: "There were inevitable delays in transportation and business processes, with some markets largely closed for parts of the year which reduced sales. Conversely, some markets traded with very little interruption. However, the net trading outcome was positive leaving the company to enter 2021 in a strong financial position and well placed to continue to pursue opportunities across all three divisions" MTI says it will continue to seek to expand through a mix of acquisitions and organic growth.
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Physiomics PLC - oncology consultant based in Oxford - Revenue in half-year to December 31 edges up 5.8% to GB363,000 from GBP343,000 year-on-year, with pretax loss widening slightly to GBP132,000 from GBP118,000. "The second half revenues for the last two financial years have significantly exceeded those of the first half and the board expects this trend to continue in the current financial year," Physiomics says.
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Greencoat Renewables PLC - renewable energy company with offices in London and Dublin - Says 2020 generation increases 22% to 1,404 gigawatt hours, 3% below budget, while net cash generation increases 26% to EUR66.4 million. Net asset value per share 101.0 cents at December-end, versus 103.1 cents at end of 2019. "Despite negative inflation in the short term, I am pleased to confirm our target 2021 dividend will remain at 6.06 cent, consistent with our strategy of having a progressive dividend policy," says Non-Executive Chair Ronan Murphy.
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Quartix Holdings PLC - vehicle tracking systems supplier - Revenue for 2020 is up 0.8% to GBP25.8 million, though pretax profit falls 12% to GBP5.7 million. Quartix takes GBP1.6 million provision in respect of the swap out of 3G fleet units in the US. Declares final dividend of 17.7p, up from 10p in 2019, which includes a supplementary dividend of 15.30p and brings total payout to 21.07p. "The group has made a strong start to the year, in line with our expectations. Given the success that Quartix has achieved in its core fleet markets, and considering the broader market opportunity available to it, the group intends to invest a larger proportion of its profits on sales and marketing during 2021 to capitalise further on the profitable subscription platform it has created by accelerating growth in its fleet subscription base," Quartix says.
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GlobalData PLC - London-based data analytics and consulting - Revenue for 2020 flat at GBP178.4 million but pretax profit jumps to GBP28.6 million from GBP8.0 million, with margin strengthening to 16% from 4%. Says renewal rates remained strong through the year and subscription sales gathered momentum through the second half contributing to subscription revenue growth of 7% for the full year. These positive trends resulted in 9% growth in invoiced forward revenue as at 31 December 2020 to GBP92.7 million. Separately says it has appointed Catherine Birkett as a non-executive director and she will join start of next week. She is currently chief financial officer of GoCardless Ltd, a fintech business.
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Seplat Petroleum Development Co PLC - Nigerian oil & gas company - Says revenue for 2020 is USD530.5 million, down 24% on USD697.8 million in 2019. Swings to pretax loss of USD80.2 million, however, from profit of USD293.0 million year before. Takes USD144.3 million impairment of assets, up sharply from USD48.6 million the year ago. Working-interest production within guidance at 51,183 barrels of oil equivalent per day, despite demand fall and OPEC+ quotas. Expects to produce around 48,000 to 55,000 barrels per day in 2021.
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By Lucy Heming; lucyheming@alliancenews.com
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