Cerillion beats forecasts with double-digit profit growth

Software group Cerillion delivered an impressive set of annual results on Monday, with double-digit growth across the board nd record profits supporting a 17% increase in its total dividend.

The company, which provides billing, charging and customer relationship management software solutions, reported a 12% increase in revenues to £43.8m in the 12 months to 30 September.

Adjusted pre-tax profit rose 18% to a record £19.8m, helped by two major new customer wins, significant licence revenue and strong demand from existing customers. Analysts at Canaccord Genuity said operating profits were around 11% ahead of their foreasts.

Meanwhile total new orders were up 21% on the year before at an all-time high of £38.1m, with the back-order book at £46.9m by the year-end, slightly up on last year's level.

The company declared a final dividend of 9.2p per share, up from 8.0p previously, bringing the total payout for hte year to 13.2p, up from 11.3p.

"Trading conditions remain favourable for us. While total global telco capital investment may have slowed, investment in the enterprise software layer connecting telcos' network infrastructure to their customers remains essential," said chief execcutive Louis Hall.

"The company remains well-positioned to make further progress over the new financial year, with a healthy back-order book and strong new customer sales pipeline."

Canaccord Genuity reiterated its 'buy' rating for the stock following the results, giving a bullish outlook for the company.

"Our analysis suggests that if Cerillion continues to grow ~15% p.a. for the next five years, it could double market share & revenues and EPS potentially by 107%," the broker said.

Cerllion's share price was up 2.1% at 1,920p by 0922 GMT.