- Revenue rose 17% to £258.3 million
- Shares up 18% in morning trading
- Pre-tax profits up 61% to £56.4 million
Shares in YouGov (YOU:AIM) were up over 18% to 818p, as the research and data analytics group reported a 63% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit to £56.4 million for the year ended 31 July 2023 despite a challenging macroeconomic background.
YouGov shares however are down around 20% year-to-date.
The company’s revenue rose 17% to £258.3 million compared to £221.1 million in the same year ago period.
Highlights include data products revenue increasing by 16% to £89.5 million driven by strong subscription renewal rates and custom research revenue increasing by 27% to £121.8 million driven by continued sales momentum globally from long term tracking and ad-hoc projects.
CEO Steve Hatch attributed the rise to the ‘right focus’ and ‘strategic direction’ of the company: ‘We have continued to invest for sustainable growth, in line with our strategy, while delivering further margin expansion and robust cash generation.’
Hatch the former Meta (META:NASDAQ) vice president of Northern Europe, said he remained confident in the group’s prospects for the full year 2024 and ‘meeting current market expectations on a stand-alone basis.’
YouGov mulling US listing another blow for London stock market
Steve Hatch’s appointment as YouGov was announced by the company back in April, he assumed the role on 1 August and seems to have ‘hit the ground running.’
EXPERT VIEW
Berenberg analyst Ciaran Donnelly said in a research note that YouGov has a clear strategic growth plan: ‘It has been a smooth and orderly transition with previous CEO Stephan Shakespeare moving to a non-executive chair role and there is early momentum in delivering on the strategic initiatives, particularly in the commercial teams, and a clear plan to increase share of wallet with existing clients, which is a significant opportunity for YouGov.’
Donnelly says the shares are at a 60% discount relative to the five-year average 12-month forward P/E.
Berenberg has updated the company’s price target to reflect the interest rate environment and new forecasts.
GFK DEAL
In July former YouGov CEO Stephan Shakespeare said the company was buying GfK’s consumer panel business for €315 million
GfK is a business leader in household purchase data, with panels across 16 European countries.
Hatch said this deal is yet to close but the group with provide a further update on the medium-term guidance ‘following closing of the acquisition.’
