UPDATE: Micro Focus Fiscal Year Sales +20%; Confident For Current Year
25 6월 2009 - 4:36PM
Dow Jones News
Business software company Micro Focus International PLC
(MCRO.LN) said Thursday full year sales rose 20%, helped by its
NetManage acquisition and its recession-busting IT improvement
model, and said it is confident for the current year.
Micro Focus provides software and consultancy services to help
clients update legacy IT platforms, a less costly solution than
buying new systems, particularly for firms looking to save costs
due to the economic downturn.
Micro Focus said sales in the year to April 30 rose to $274.7
million from $228.2 million last year, just shy of company
consensus forecasts of $275.8 million, while net profit rose to $66
million from $55 million last time.
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and
amortization, or Ebitda, which excludes exceptionals and
share-based payments, rose 34% to $118.6 million.
Around 10% of revenue growth was generated organically with the
remainder from acquisitions, most notably Netmanage, bought last
year.
Micro Focus has a long term target of growing its business
organically in the double-digits. It reiterated this long-term goal
and said it views the current year with confidence despite the
uncertain macro economic environment.
The company has also been on a recent acquisition spree to build
out its software testing business, which ensures that software
works properly as it is being developed.
It is in the process of acquiring Texas, U.S.-based software
company Borland Software Corp. (BORL), and said Thursday that the
prospectus will be issued shortly.
Micro Focus was forced to raise its offer for Borland earlier
this month after a second bidder emerged. That bidder has withdrawn
and the company's $88 million bid is being recommended by Borland's
board.
Its other recent acquisition, of Compuware Corp.'s (CPWR)
testing and automated software quality business, is expected to
have a negative impact on margins, Micro Focus said.
The group improved its adjusted Ebitda margins in the full year
to 43% from 39% last year but now expects this to fall back
following the Compuware acquisition. The company didn't say by how
much.
Still, the margin improvement was ahead of expectations, Panmure
Gordon analyst George O'Connor said, and the results were in-line,
with cash generation a real positive.
The company generated $105 million in cash from continuing
operations, up from $91 milion last year, and will use some of its
$72 million cash balance at April 30 to fund its acquisitions.
The company proposed a final dividend 11.1 cents, up from 9.4
cents last time, bringing the total dividend to 15.6c, up 20%.
Shortly after the open Thursday, Micro Focus shares rose 1.3% to
380p.
-By Kathy Sandler, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-207-842-9293;
kathy.sandler@dowjones.com