AVEVA 1H profits leap 149% as sales grow strongly worldwide
AVEVA Group plc (AVV.L), one of the world's leading providers of engineering data and design IT systems, reported sales growth of 58% to £45.9m for the six months ended 30th September compared to the same period in 2005.
Operating profit jumped 149% to £13.7m.
Chairman Nick Prest (pictured) said: “AVEVA is delivering outstanding growth as a result of our investment in leading engineering data and design IT software solutions serving buoyant markets.
“We have entered the second half with a healthy pipeline of new business and the Board expects full year results to be ahead of market expectations, but with less weighting towards the second half than previous years.”
Share price up
The share price gained 10% to 690p after the results were released. The Cambridge-headquartered group is now worth around £460m
Mr Prest said the group’s excellent performance, which benefited from increased contributions in all regions and major industrial sectors, reflected its leading position in the high growth markets of oil and gas, power and marine in which it operates, and established relationships with a large number of blue-chip clients.
The performance was also boosted by several key contracts secured ahead of schedule with higher than expected initial fees impacting in the first half.
It had another outstanding performance in Asia Pacific, where sales grew 92% from to £20.9m. The region accounted for 45% of total revenue in this period. In particular, AVEVA benefited from rapidly growing demand for power generation capacity in China and the fast growing marine market in Korea.
Central, Eastern and Southern Europe saw revenues increase by 39% to £10.4m, with the oil and gas and power markets particularly buoyant.
The Americas business was up 26% to £6.3m. The oil and gas markets remain the drivers in this region, however given AVEVA's knowledge and existing customer relationships in other regions, it said it was well placed to benefit from new opportunities in the power sector.
Western Europe, the Middle East and Africa revenues were up 51% to £8.3m. Much of the growth across this region has been developed around existing customers and the increased demand for major projects across all aspects of the business.
R&D
The Group said it spent £7.2m (2005: £6.4m) in software research and development and that it expected to continue these investments going forward to sustain and enhance its leadership position
15th November 2006
