(Sharecast News) - Neuroscience data analytics firm Ixico has inked a £10.5m contract for a late-phase open-label study into Huntington's disease, but warned that the Covid-19 pandemic had affected it in "multiple ways".
Ixico said on Tuesday that the contract would run for four years, with the majority of revenue expected to be generated in 2022 and 2023. The deal also brought the total value of new contracts signed in the current trading year to £15m.
The AIM-listed group expects to report revenue growth for the six months ended 31 March of "at least 25%" year-on-year and highlighted that it had finished the half with £6.7m of cash and no debt.
As far as Covid-19 impacts go, Ixico said the pandemic had affected all of its business units "in multiple ways". Clinical trial operations were impacted by ongoing travel restrictions and social distancing policies, which could also lead to clinical sites being quarantined or closed down.
However, due to its strong order book and operational improvements implemented prior to the outbreak, Ixico noted it had "a significant backlog" of image analysis and other revenue-generating project requirements for short-term completion and delivery but still cautioned that revenues were expected to slow down in the second half of the year.
Chief executive, Giulio Cerroni, said: "Whilst implementing the necessary response to mitigate an anticipated near-term slowdown in revenues and a constraint on market development opportunities, we will continue to make our technology-enabled services as efficient and agile as possible.
"We plan to be 'start-up ready' when clients re-initiate studies that have been suspended or slowed down and, despite these extraordinary times, we face the future with cautious confidence."
As of 0930 BST, Ixico shares had ticked up 0.77% to 65.50p.