Manx Telecom profits jump despite flat revenue

(Sharecast News) - Isle of Man telecommunications firm Manx Telecom on Wednesday reported a 4.9% increase in first half profit before tax to £5.5m as the company continued its fibre-optic rollout.For the period ended 30 June revenue fell 0.9% to £38.1m due to lower kit sales and mobile roaming revenues and adjusted profit, which stripped out one-off gains and losses, fell 1.4% to £6.6m.The AIM traded company declared an interim dividend of 4.10p per share, up from 3.90p last year.Manx's net debt stood at £64m at 30 June, up 4% on the same period last year, while cash and cash equivalents were at £5.4m, up 28% compared to last year's midpoint.Chief executive Gary Lamb said: "We have had another solid six months, with performance in line with the board's expectations. A good performance by the core business against a competitive market backdrop allowed continued investment in our areas of highest growth potential: Global Solutions, managed services and Vannin Ventures."The rollout of the company's new ultrafast FTTP broadband is on track, with 12% of premises due to be passed by the end of the year and uptake growth expected in the second half of the year."We are particularly excited by our high potential Goshawk product to be initially launched in the Isle of Man during September and then in the UK next year in partnership with BT/EE. This product is a global first for those with hearing loss and presents a significant medium-term growth opportunity for Manx Telecom," said Lamb.Thus far, the company is trading in line with the board's expectations and the company is confident that it will continue to do so as underlying levels of cash flow remain strong.Broker Liberum reaffirmed its 'buy' rating of the company's shares with a target price of 230p, citing the firm's "resilient" results and the "valuable" and intriguing nature of progress that has been made with Goshawk and BT/EE.Manx's shares were up 2.85% at 171.25p at 1021 BST.