Strong licensing boosts Imagination Tech

(Adds details, shares, analyst reaction)

LONDON, June 24 (Reuters) - Britain's Imagination Tech, a supplier of graphics and video technology to Apple, beat expectations for full-year operating profit onTuesday, reflecting stronger demand to license its processorblueprints.

Licensing revenue rose 32 percent to 38.3 million pounds($65 million), towards the upper end of its forecast, whileroyalty revenue, which it receives on each of the 1.25 billionchips shipped by partners, rose 15 percent to 109 millionpounds.

Chief Executive Hossein Yassaie said the company had seensignificant growth in new licensing deals both for smartphonesand new products.

Shares in Imagination, which have risen 29 percent in thelast three months, were up 8.3 percent at 243 pence at 0722 GMT,the biggest riser on the FTSE mid cap index.

Analyst Lee Simpson at Jefferies, who has a "buy" rating onthe stock, said Imagination was back on track as the travails oflast year, when it suffered weak licensing and dropping royaltyrates, ebbed.

"There will always be industry volatility but largelyspeaking there is still a long runway of growth to be seenacross much of IMG's IP portfolio," he said.

Adjusted operating profit at the group for the year toend-April fell to 24.1 million pounds from 33.5 million a yearago, largely on an increase in operating expenses after itacquired the MIPs processor technology in 2013.($1 = 0.5880 British Pounds) (Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Kate Holton)