http://www.iomart.com/

The Group's principal activity is providing web based managed hosting services for both the consumer and business.

Originally founded in 1998 as an integrated internet and telecommunications company, the Group has evolved to become one of Europe’s largest providers of managed hosting, colocation, data centre, and business continuity services, serving over 300, 000 customers each day. Having been at the forefront of the UK’s technological revolution for the past decade the Group has developed an enviable reputation for its internet expertise, its service ethic and its product innovation.

The Group holds a unique position within the marketplace. By owning its own data centre and network infrastructure, it is able to deliver the complete set of vertical components in the hosting arena from domain names, virtual web space, security, web marketing, SEO, websites, dedicated servers through to complex managed hosting solutions, colocation space, power, cooling and bandwidth.

As more and more mission critical business applications move on to the web, so organisations need more resilience, security and 24 hour management; the market for managed hosting services and datacentre capacity is expected to grow significantly over the next few years.Described by US Analyst Tier 1 as "currently enjoying the sort of momentum that could soon place it on the list of European heavyweights.", the iomart Group is fast proving to be one of the UK's leading lights in the provision of true cloud computing services.

Response to Host announcement and Trading Update

RNS


RNS Number : 7458R

Iomart Group PLC

16 September 2014




iomart Group plc

("iomart", or "the Group")



Response to announcement by Host

Pre-close Trading Update



The Board of iomart notes the announcement by Host Europe Holdings Ltd ("Host"), a company controlled by funds managed by Cinven Capital Management (V) General Partner Limited (of which Cinven Partners LLP ("Cinven") is the adviser), that it does not intend to make a formal offer for iomart. Accordingly, iomart is no longer considered to be in an offer period for the purposes of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers.



Pre-close Trading Update



The Board is pleased to report that the business has continued to perform strongly in the first half of the financial year. Trading in the six months ending 30 September 2014 has been in line with management expectations, with both revenue and profits expected to be substantially ahead of the comparative period last year.



These expected results build on the growth of the business in recent years, which has seen iomart deliver a compound annual growth rate in revenues of 32% since 2010 and 66% at the adjusted EBITDA level.



Demand for the Group's services remains strong and growing as the market continues to move towards the provision of products and services over the internet. These strong market drivers leave the Board confident in the outlook for the full year and optimistic for continued long-term success.



Angus MacSween, CEO of iomart Group plc, commented:



"The Group has delivered strong growth as we continue to execute on our focussed strategy of providing high quality and high margin managed solutions. With an outstanding track record and an established reputation as the UK's leading cloud computing company, we look forward to the future success of iomart."

16 Sep SP Angel 300.00 Buy
16 Sep finnCap 325.00 Buy

Interim Results 9th December 2014

RNS


RNS Number : 1881Z

Iomart Group PLC

09 December 2014






9 December 2014

iomart Group plc

("iomart" or the "Group" or the "Company")

Half Yearly Results



iomart (AIM:IOM), the cloud computing company, is pleased to report its consolidated half yearly results for the period ended 30 September 2014.



FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS



· Revenue growth of 28% to £31.5m (H1 2014: £24.6m)

· Adjusted EBITDA1 growth of 44% to £14.0m (H1 2014: £9.8m)

· Adjusted profit before tax2 growth of 27% to £8.0m (H1 2014: £6.3m)

· Adjusted basic earnings per share3 from operations increased by 26% to 6.15p (H1 2014: 4.89p)

· Cashflow from operations increased by 49% to £13.5m (H1 2014: £9.1m)

· Cashflow from operations 96% of adjusted EBITDA1 (H1 2014: 93%)

· Adjusted EBITDA1 margins increased to 44% (H1 2014: 40%)



OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS



· Development of relationships with strategic Tier 1 providers such as Microsoft, EMC and Dell

· Creation of cloud infrastructure and backup operation in the USA

· Acquisition of ServerSpace after end of period for a maximum consideration of £4.25m



Statutory Equivalents



The above highlights are based on adjusted results. A full reconciliation between adjusted and statutory results is contained within this statement. The statutory equivalents of the above results are as follows:



· Profit before tax growth of 26% to £5.5m (H1 2014: £4.4m)

· Basic earnings per share from operations increased by 25% to 4.25p (H1 2014: 3.39p)



Angus MacSween, CEO commented,



"We have demonstrated a further strong performance as we continue to benefit from last year's acquisitions of Redstation and Backup Technology, and we have made a good start to the second half of the year.

The market opportunity remains large and long term and, in a fast moving and ever evolving industry we have the skills and experience to continue to perform well. Our focus going forward is on continuing to deepen our relationships with the large Tier 1 vendors and their growing trust in our abilities gives me confidence for iomart' s prospects in the years ahead."











1 Throughout this statement adjusted EBITDA is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) before share based payment charges and acquisition costs. Throughout this statement acquisition costs are defined as acquisition related costs and non-recurring acquisition integration costs.

2 Throughout this statement adjusted profit before tax is profit before tax, amortisation charges on acquired intangible assets, share based payment charges, mark to mark adjustments in respect of interest rate swaps, acquisition costs and in the prior year the accelerated write off of arrangement fees on the bank borrowing facility which was repaid early.

3 Throughout this statement adjusted earnings per share is earnings per share before amortisation charges on acquired intangible

assets, share based payment charges, mark to market adjustments in respect of interest rate swaps, acquisition costs and in the prior year the accelerated write off of arrangement fees on the bank borrowing facility which was repaid early including the taxation effect of these.

Iomart shares take a hit despite revenue growth

By Andrew Neil

December 09 2014, 3:16pm
Iomart shares take a hit despite revenue growth

Shares in cloud computing specialist Iomart (LON:IOM) took a knock today, despite impressive top line growth figures.

First half revenues at the Glasgow-based firm grew 28% on last year to £31.5mln.

However, its cloud hosting arm (which accounted for £26m of revenues) saw a lower than expected improvement, leading to a 20% share price drop.

Essentially, the hosting business puts websites onto virtual servers, cutting costs and improving cybersecurity.

While the market for cloud services continues to expand, it’s become highly competitive.

Customer decision-making has become slower, with more strategic cloud choices to contemplate.

That cut organic growth in the segment to 8% - compared to the 12% management had hoped to achieve.

“We have seen casualties amongst our base, some with funding difficulties, some dropping out of markets and some being acquired and integrated elsewhere,” said chief executive Angus MacSween.

The most significant trend is the maturing and adoption of the large 'public cloud' offerings, primarily Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft through Azure and Office 365.

That has led Iomart to adopt a strategy of ensuring every flavour of cloud can be provided, be it Microsoft Azure, Office 365, AWS, vCloud Air, as well as private ring-fenced infrastructure.

“Iomart's challenge is continuing to position itself as the 'agnostic cloud company',” added MacSween.

The company is also focused on making the "right" acquisitions and last week wrapped up the £4.2mln acquisition of ServerSpace.

IT storage hardware firm EMC has also selected Iomart as its European partner for the launch of its Enterprise Hybrid Cloud.

Broker finnCap trimmed its share price target to 285p but upheld its ‘buy’ stance on the firm today.

Shares are currently priced at 180p.

UK government awards iomart spot on digital marketplace



By Gulli Arnason · February 4, 2015




UK cloud company iomart (AIM:IOM) said it has been awarded a place on G-Cloud 6, the UK government´s digital marketplace.

iomart has been accredited to supply infrastructure as a service (IaaS); platform as a service (PaaS); software as a service (SaaS); and specialist cloud services.

Among the services it offers are: vCloud and vCloud IaaS – self-managed and hosted virtual infrastructure services based on a VMware vCloud environment; Desktop as a Service; Hosted Exchange and Storage; Business Mail plus Mail and Web Filtering; File Sync and Share; and Advanced DDoS Protection using Arbor Network´s Peakflow solution.

Angus MacSween, CEO of iomart, said, “For public sector organisations the benefits of procuring services through G Cloud are manifest because they don´t have to go through costly and time-intensive due diligence on potential service providers. Cloud services can be bought off-the-shelf quickly and easily because the background checks have already been done.”

Award winning cloud company iomart Group enables businesses and organisations to operate their online data and IT environments safely and securely. Headquartered in Glasgow, Scotland, iomart partners with leading vendors such as VMware, Amazon, EMC, Microsoft, Asigra, Arbor Networks and Dell to offer customers a centrally managed, controlled and completely agnostic set of hybrid, private and public cloud platforms. For more information visit http://www.iomart.com

Naked Trader today - When a company gets bid for and then it is turned down, it's amazing how often said company falls to a bid again at some point in the future. I've had quite a few of these in particular Kentz (LON:KENZ) where I made many thousands.

Iomart (LON:IOM) where I made quite a bit when it was bid for before managing to sell before the bid fell through I think is one of those and been building a stake in it.

It's six months since the last bid for it and it would be little surprise to see another one come along - the last bid interest was around the 300p mark and I suspect the company could be bought for that. Or 270 will do! Hell, I'll take 250 !

So I have bought a few more IOM, and noted the price has been steadily rising since it hit around 170. Looks like others feel the same! Even if it isn't bid for it seems to be reasonably priced around 2 quid. I hope to hold now and be patient.

Pre-Close Trading Update
RNS
RNS Number : 0722J
Iomart Group PLC
01 April 2015



1 April 2015



iomart Group plc

Pre-close Trading Statement

iomart Group plc (AIM:IOM), the cloud computing company, is pleased to provide its pre-close trading statement for the year ending 31 March 2015 ahead of the announcement of its full year results.



Group Trading Performance

The Board is pleased to report that iomart expects to deliver another good set of results.

For the year to 31 March 2015, the Group expects to show adjusted EBITDA(1) of approximately £29.0 million (FY2014: £23.6 million) and adjusted(2) profit before tax of approximately £16.6 million (FY2014: £14.6 million) both in line with consensus market expectations.

Over the period, the Group has delivered solid organic growth combined with good performances from its acquired businesses, and the Board anticipates these dual drivers of growth continuing in future.



Operations

The Hosting segment has continued to win a substantial amount of new business over the year, as the Group continues to benefit from the growing adoption of cloud services by organisations that need a strong partner with the necessary infrastructure to provide the certainty, scalability and flexibility they are looking for. Hosting also benefitted from the full year contribution of Redstation, and Backup Technology, the cloud backup business, both of which were acquired in September 2013 and ServerSpace which has contributed to the results since its acquisition in December 2014.

Easyspace has also performed in line with expectations over the year.

Angus MacSween, CEO of iomart Group plc, stated:

"iomart has delivered another solid year of growth. The long term opportunity remains very real and iomart is well positioned to take advantage of growth in the Cloud."



(1)adjusted EBITDA means earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation, share based payment charges, acquisition related costs and non-recurring acquisition integration costs.

(2)adjusted profit before tax means profits before, tax, share based payment charges, amortisation of acquired intangibles, acquisition related costs, non-recurring acquisition integration costs, mark to market adjustments in respect of interest swap arrangements and in the comparative period the accelerated write off of arrangement fees on the bank borrowing facility which was repaid early in the prior period.

Read new research note at http://tinyurl.com/oghark4

1 Apr SP Angel 270.00 Buy
1 Apr finnCap 285.00 Buy

Naked trader - Iomart (LON:IOM) put out a strong statement. The beauty of it is that Iomart shares aren't worth much less than they are now, so one can hold happily. What we are waiting for is another bid to come in, I suspect next time 300p will be enough.

It's one of those shares to put away, forget about and then one morning when you least expect it a bid announcement appears and you've gained 40% overnight. I'm waiting patiently....

Acquisition of SystemsUp Limited
RNS
RNS Number : 4371P
Iomart Group PLC
08 June 2015

8 June 2015

iomart Group plc

("iomart" or the "Group" or the "Company")



Acquisition of SystemsUp Limited ("SystemsUp")



iomart, the cloud computing company, is pleased to announce that it has acquired the entire issued share capital of SystemsUp on a cash-free/debt-free basis with normalised working capital.



£9.0m has been paid in cash as an initial consideration and an interim payment of £0.5m in respect of the cash-free, debt-free normalised working capital adjustment has also been paid. A further contingent consideration is due in respect of revenues, on an adjusted basis, for the year to March 2016. It has been estimated that this contingent payment could be in the region of £1.0m to £3.5m.



SystemsUp is a London consultancy specialising in the delivery of IT transformation using Public Cloud. It boasts a range of expertise in the design and delivery of public cloud solutions and is a G-Cloud partner to Google, an authorised Government Partner to Amazon Web Services and a Microsoft Gold Partner.



SystemUp's turnover in the twelve months to 31 March 2015 was £4.0 million with a Profit Before Tax of £1.5 million and net assets of £1.25 million. The initial consideration and any contingent consideration will be financed out of the Group's existing banking facilities and the acquisition is expected to be immediately earnings enhancing before acquisition costs and normal acquisition adjustments including any fair value adjustments and the amortisation of intangible assets.



Angus MacSween, Chief Executive stated:

"The market for cloud computing is becoming incredibly complex and the demand for public cloud services is increasing at pace. With the acquisition of SystemsUp, iomart has broadened its ability to engage at a strategic level and act as a trusted advisor on cloud strategy to organisations wanting to create the right blend of cloud services, both public and private, to fit their requirements. "

8 Jun N+1 Singer 242.00 Buy
8 Jun finnCap 285.00 Buy

RNS
RNS Number : 5739P
Iomart Group PLC
09 June 2015



9 June 2015

iomart Group plc

("iomart" or the "Group" or the "Company")

Final Results for the Year ended 31 March 2015



iomart (AIM:IOM), the cloud computing company, is pleased to report its consolidated final results for the year ended 31 March 2015.



FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS



· Revenue growth of 18% to £65.8m (2014: £55.6m)



· Adjusted EBITDA1 growth of 23% to £29.1m (2014: £23.6m)



· Adjusted profit before tax growth2 of 14% to £16.6m (2014: £14.6m)



· Adjusted diluted earnings per share3 from operations increased by 16% to 12.63p (2014: 10.85p)



· Cashflow from operations increased by 13% to £27.2m (2014: £24.0m)



· Adjusted EBITDA1 margins increased to 44% (2014: 42%)



· Proposed final dividend increased by 43% to 2.50p per share (2014: 1.75p per share)

OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS



· Building relationships for Hybrid Cloud opportunities with major players



· Continued M&A activity with the acquisition of ServerSpace



· Acquisition of SystemsUp to address the Public Cloud opportunity



Statutory Equivalents



The above highlights are based on adjusted results. A full reconciliation between adjusted and statutory results is contained within this statement. The statutory equivalents of the above results are as follows:



· Profit before tax growth of 11% to £10.8m (2014: £9.7m)

· Basic earnings per share from operations increased by 14% to 8.34p (2014: 7.30p)





1 Throughout this statement adjusted EBITDA is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) before share based payment charges and acquisition costs. Throughout this statement acquisition costs are defined as acquisition related costs and non-recurring acquisition integration costs.

2 Throughout this statement adjusted profit before tax is profit before tax, amortisation charges on acquired intangible assets, shared based payment charges, mark to mark adjustments in respect of interest rate swaps, acquisition costs and in the previous year the accelerated write off of arrangement fees on the bank borrowing facilities which were repaid early during that year.

3 Throughout this statement adjusted diluted earnings per share is earnings per share before amortisation charges on acquired intangible assets, shared based payment charges, mark to mark adjustments in respect of interest rate swaps, acquisition costs and in the previous year the accelerated write off of arrangement fees on the bank borrowing facilities which were repaid early during that year, including the taxation effect of these.





Angus MacSween, CEO commented,



"We are working hard to ensure we remain at the leading edge in terms of the skill sets and experience to provide an ever more complex set of services to our customers and are confident of our abilities to do so, reinforced by the acquisition of SystemsUp in recent days.

We are well positioned for further significant growth."

Proactive investors - Iomart (LON:IOM), down 6.5%. The Cloud computing company’s profit before tax climbed to £10.79mln from £9.72mln the year before, but the market was expecting more from a company in a high-growth sector.

Shares - management services data centre Iomart has continued its acquisition spree with a deal that has plugged an important hybrid cloud hole in its portfolio. Several analysts believe that this could turn the tide for the shares at 232p and set them racing back towards 300p mark.

/iomart-ready-for-big-deal-after-raising-60m-from-bank

Director/PDMR Shareholding
RNS
RNS Number : 0558Y
Iomart Group PLC
04 September 2015



iomart Group plc

("iomart" or the "Company")



Director's Shareholding





iomart (AIM:IOM), the cloud computing company, announces that following the purchase of ordinary shares of 1 pence each in the capital of the Company ("Ordinary Shares") on 1 September 2015 under the terms of the iomart Dividend Reinvestment Plan ("DRIP"), the Company has been notified on 3 September 2015 that Angus MacSween, Chief Executive Officer of the Company, bought 160,016 Ordinary Shares at a price of 255.1 pence per share.



Following this transaction, Angus MacSween now holds 16,994,087 Ordinary Shares representing 15.9 per cent. of the voting rights in the Company.

Pre-close Trading Update
RNS
RNS Number : 6235A
Iomart Group PLC
30 September 2015



30 September 2015

iomart Group plc

("iomart" or the "Group")



Pre-close Trading Update



iomart Group plc (AIM:IOM), the cloud computing company, is pleased to provide its pre-close trading statement for the six months ending 30 September 2015 ahead of the announcement of its half yearly results.



Group trading performance



The Board is pleased to report that the business has continued to perform strongly in the first half of the financial year. Trading in the six months ending 30 September 2015 has been in line with management expectations, with both revenue and profits expected to be materially ahead of the comparative period last year.



SystemsUp Limited, a cloud consulting business to the public sector, which was acquired in June 2015 has strengthened the Group's Public Cloud strategy, bringing in consulting experience and stronger relationships with Public Cloud vendors.



The Group continues to seek further strategic acquisitions, having secured a substantial additional funding package in July from Bank of Scotland to bring the total bank facility to £60m.



Demand for the Group's services remains strong as iomart continues to differentiate its offering in the market with its own datacentres, focus on the SME and mid-market, and a consultative sales approach. Private Cloud adoption continues to grow and iomart has an expanding capability here. A hybrid approach to cloud is increasingly the norm for enterprises and there is a clear market role for companies such as iomart to help manage the complex transformation to the cloud. These strong market drivers with future growth underpinned by existing and new clients leave the Board confident in the outlook for the full year and optimistic for continued success.





Angus MacSween, CEO of iomart Group plc, commented:



"We are very pleased with the way the business has performed in the period and the Board is highly confident in the future. The Group is well positioned to sustain its competitive advantage within the hybrid cloud market with its strong customer base and growing expertise in private cloud. With an outstanding track record and an established reputation as the UK's leading cloud computing company, we believe the prospects for iomart continue to be excellent."