(Alliance News) - Marlowe PLC on Tuesday reported a decline in half-year profit due to costs but noted progress at its integration programmes.
Marlowe shares fell 17% to 417.50 pence each on Tuesday morning in London.
The London-based software & service provider for safety and regulatory compliance said in the six months to September 30, pretax profit fell 8.7% to GBP24.1 million from GBP26.4 million a year prior. Total administrative expenses increased 25% to GBP107.7 million from GBP86.2 million and cost of sales grew 9.6% to GBP143.6 million from GBP131.0 million.
However, revenue rose 13% to GBP251.3 million from GBP222.9 million.
The company did not declare any dividend, unchanged from a year ago.
Looking ahead, Marlowe said it remained mindful of a challenging macroeconomic backdrop but noted "that demand for compliance services and software remains resilient. We continue to see good demand across Marlowe's client base, supported by the non-discretionary nature of our services & software, which are driven by regulatory requirements."
For the current financial year ending March 31, the company expects to deliver mid-single digit organic growth in revenue, supported by additional growth from recent acquisitions. Further, it eyes continued double-digit growth in adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation.
Chief Executive Officer Alex Dacre said: "Integration programmes are making good progress. The three major programmes within occupational health, water & air and compliance eLearning, alongside multiple smaller integration programmes, are either complete or expected to conclude in the coming months. We expect these programmes to continue to deliver operational and financial synergies as they progress."
By Tom Budszus, Alliance News slot editor
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Marlowe (MRL)