EMIS Group results in line but reorganisation costs cut profits

(Sharecast News) - EMIS Group on Friday reported interim results in line with expectations, though profits declined on the back of increased staff costs and operating expenses.
The healthcare software systems specialist said its profit before tax came in at £12.1m for the six months ended 30 June, down 4% compared to the same period last year, as staff costs climbed by 9% to £34.9m and operating expenses increased by 29% to £14.8m.

Profits were also hit by reorganisation costs of £2.1m, up from nil at the same point last year, as the AIM traded company restructured its operations into two segments, EMIS Health and EMIS Enterprise.

Meanwhile, revenue was down 7% at £78.8m as revenue from the EMIS Enterprise division increased by 14% to £29.5m following a number of commercial licence deals for both continuing and legacy products.

EMIS proposed an interim dividend of 15.6p, an increased of 10%.

Andy Thorburn, chief executive of EMIS, said: "We are well positioned to secure our place on the GP IT Futures framework for GP software in England and continue to invest in patient-facing technology and the next generation EMIS-X platform. With our balance of technology, clinical standards and a continuously improving technical environment, the group is well placed to deliver on its growth and margin targets."

EMIS Group shares were up 0.36% at 1,116.00p at 1105 BST.