Biome Technologies swings to profit after RF division's 'exceptional' performance

Biome Technologies saw its shares jump on Monday after the bioplastic-focused technology group swung to a first half operating profit, driven by an almost 50% jump in revenues.

For the six months ended 30 June, the company’s profit before tax stood at £0.2m, compared to a loss of £0.2m for the comparable period of the prior year, driven by the 47% increase in revenues to £4.4m on the back of the firm’s RF Technologies division.

That division, which designs, builds and services advanced radio frequency (RF) systems, saw its revenues more than double to £3.5m from £1.7m, due to strong demand for fibre-optic furnaces, which the AIM traded company expects to continue through the second half of the year.

Conversely, the Bioplastics division saw its revenue fall 25% to £0.9m on the heels of increased research and development and staffing costs in anticipation of greater demand for bioplastics.

At 30 June, Biome Technologies had cash and cash equivalents of £2.3m, up from £1.9m at the same point last year.

Paul Mines, chief executive, said: "Opportunities within the bioplastics division are increasing with substantial revenue potential in the medium term whilst the Stanelco RF division has delivered an exceptional start to the year. It is against this backdrop that board remains confident in the group's outlook for 2018."

Biome Technologies’ shares were up 11.21% at 506.00p at 1246 BST.