MJ Hudson trades above expectations in third quarter

The AIM-traded firm said that as a result, it expected to report results ahead of current market consensus for the 12 months ending 30 June, with “encouraging signs” that the trend would continue.

Its board said it expected the 2022 results to show adjusted EBITDA of at least £8.3m, which would represent an increase of at least 45% compared with the prior year.

“This outperformance is underpinned by an improved business mix through new client revenues in higher margin segments,” the board said in its statement.

“Revenue visibility has also improved owing to the largely recurring nature of this new business.

“MJ Hudson has also secured significant new client wins, the full impact of which will be experienced in the 2023 financial year.”

As it said in its interim results, MJ Hudson said the key areas of outperformance were its three growth areas of ESG and sustainability, the Irish Super ManCo, and Luxembourg fund services.

In particular, the group said its ESG services were gaining traction with “new, prestigious global” private equity clients.

There was “significant interest” in the new digital platform ‘ESGAdvantage’, the board said, leading to client uptake ahead of management expectations.

“We are delighted to give such a positive update on trading, today, following an exceptionally strong third quarter,” said chief executive officer Matthew Hudson.

“As outlined in our interim results, we have a number of high growth opportunities which are beginning to scale.

“In particular, our data and analytics division - which supports our clients in a number of key areas, including ESG - is attracting some of the largest names in private markets to us.”

Hudson said the firm was “increasingly finding” itself considered “the go-to solution provider” in the sector.

“Our ability to win high-profile clients across our other business areas demonstrates the end-to-end strength of the MJ Hudson platform.

“This, taken together with our exposure to the on-going growth of private markets and our long term relationships with mostly an Anglo-American client base, underpins our growth and makes for a resilient business model.”

At 1548 BST, shares in MJ Hudson Group were up 4.37% at 35.22p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.