FDM earnings rise in year of strong demand

The FTSE 250 IT consultancy said its adjusted operating profit grew 11% to reach £47.3mfor the year ended 31 December, while its profit before tax was 1% higher at £41.4m.

Basic earnings per share were up 3% at 29.1p, and adjusted basic earnings per share were ahead 15% at 33.2p.

FDM declared a final dividend of 18p per share, following the interim dividend of 15p announced in July, making for a total dividend of 33p for the year - down 29% on the 46.5p distributions made for 2020.

The company said cash flow from operations was down 21% at £52.1m, while cash conversion was 22% lower at 124.1% and adjusted cash conversion lost 29% to 110.3%.

Cash at year-end totalled £53.1m, down 18% from the £64.7m it had at the end of 2020.

“FDM made good progress in 2021, with the numbers of Mounties trained during the year and of Mounties in training at the year-end both a record high,” said chief executive officer Rod Flavell.

“The group continued with its significant investment in academy transformation and accreditation programmes to underpin the future growth of the business.

“This year we are targeting a significant increase in the numbers of Mounties that we train and deploy and plan to accelerate our internal staff recruitment and other internal development programmes, with a particular focus on our sales and Academy training teams.”

Flavell said during the first weeks of 2022, demand for FDM’s people across its operating territories was “very strong”, with “excellent levels” of deal volumes.

“We have seen client ordering patterns at greater levels than ever before with established and new clients of the group looking for very significant quantities of Mounties, across a broad range of skill sets.

“Notwithstanding the wider geopolitical issues ongoing in the world, the group is well placed to deliver a good performance in 2022 and beyond.”

At 0929 GMT, shares in FDM Group Holdings were up 3.07% at 939p.