kam - 11 Dec 2002 10:33

IT solutions group Anite saw its half-year pre-tax profits dive into the red after it booked a hefty ?39m goodwill write-off. Pre-tax losses for the six month to October totalled ?43.4m against a profit of ?1.96 last time.

Before exceptionals its profits slumped to ?8.9m against ?14.3m on turnover up 20% to ?111.5m. The company blamed increased R&D and restructuring costs for the fall in profits.

Basic earnings per share for the six months to October were 2.1p against 3.9p last time, in part reflecting 14.7% increase in shares in issue.

The ?39.1m goodwill write-off has led to basic and diluted losses per share of 14.0p

The group assured investors that it is `operating comfortably? within its banking facilities. Anite remains confident that for the year as a whole, the group will perform in line with expectations.

Anite said order intake has been `strong? during the six months, totalling ?114m with IT contracts from the public sector up 47%. The prospect for potential new contracts is `excellent?

Commenting on the results John Hawkins, Chief Executive, said Anite?s strategy of focusing on building strong market positions in chosen sectors means that the Group, following the actions taken to renegotiate the earnout obligations, reduce costs
will be `well placed to recover strongly in 2003/4.|

In early morning trade Anite was up 1.25p to 23.25p, valuing the group at ?86.5m.

nickdr99 - 08 Jun 2005 16:54 - 2 of 6

good move today, now near 3 year high. something happening?
nickdr99 - 08 Jun 2005 16:57 - 3 of 6

anybody hold this?
cynic - 01 Jan 2008 11:42 - 4 of 6

time to revive this little stinker! ..... the company never seems to have got its act together, though certain elements of the company, noticeable travel software, perform consistently well ..... the telecom side is horrid ...... certainly thngs seem to be afoot here though it is still uncertain as to exactly what will happen .... may be worth a flutter on the basis that some sort of t/o or break up seems on the cards and sp has bounced neatly off 50 dma


cynic - 28 Sep 2010 15:46 - 5 of 6

certainly not the most exciting of stocks but perhaps worth tucking some away ..... there have certainly been stories of late that the telecom division is firing on all cylinders and i suspect their travel software biz is likewise prospering - i think it's (one of) the largest in its field
cynic - 10 Jan 2011 13:44 - 6 of 6

very boring this consistent little riser!

Canaccord Genuity Hold 75.75 180.00 106.00 Downgrades

Canaccord note today:
The net result is that although Q2 sales are likely to be sequentially higher than Q1, the uplift will not be sufficient to rescue the first half. H1 Handset revenues are now expected to be c.25% down YoY. The combination of lower gross margin as a result of the revenue shortfall and additional fixed costs from the Propsim business acquired in January, management now anticipates that the Handset business will be around break-even in H1. Although market conditions are expected to pick up in H2 – management now anticipates a similar revenue performance as H2 2013 (£46.5m) – they are unlikely to compensate for the H1 miss sufficiently to meet full year forecasts. Trading in Network Testing and Travel have seen encouraging growth YoY and are at least in line with expectations.
We have cut our FY14 PBT forecasts from £37.5m to £20.2m, a reduction of 46%. While a strong rebound in H2 might make such a cut look overly conservative, we believe that caution is appropriate given the lack of visibility in the short term. We have also reduced our FY15 PBT estimates by 24% to £32.1m for similar reasons.
Although today’s news is clearly disappointing, we are confident that the conditions that Anite is experiencing are no different to those that its competitors will be feeling and therefore do not believe that it implies any market share loss. We still believe that Anite is well positioned to capitalise on the medium term drivers in wireless testing, principally the rollout of 4G networks and increasing complexity of chipsets and handsets. We cut our recommendation to HOLD in the short term and our price target falls from 180p to the default Quest™ value per share of 106p, equating to 13.5x our new April 2015 EPS estimate.

Thanks HC. Very interesting. Not sure whether to catch that falling knife though!!

RNS directors buying, looks cheap.

Half Yearly Report

Financial highlights (adjusted) 1:

· Group order intake up 5% to £56.7m (2012: £53.9m)
- Closing order book of £106.5m (31 October 2012: £107.2m; 30 April 2013: £107.3m)
· Revenue down 6% to £57.5m (2012: £61.2m)
· Operating profit down 63% to £5.3m (2012: £14.3m)
· Profit before tax down 64% to £5.1m (2012: £14.3m)
· Diluted earnings per share down 65% to 1.2p (2012: 3.4p)
· Net debt of £6.0m (31 October 2012: net cash £16.8m; 30 April 2013: net debt £0.9m)
· Interim dividend unchanged at 0.575p per share (2012: 0.575p per share)

Statutory results:

· Revenue from continuing operations of £57.5m (2012: £61.2m)
· Operating profit from continuing operations of £1.8m (2012: £11.3m), after:
- share based payments charge of £0.7m (2012: £1.8m)
- amortisation of acquired intangible assets of £2.4m (2012: £1.2m)
- restructuring costs of £0.4m (2012: £nil)
· Profit from continuing operations before tax of £1.6m (2012: £11.3m)
· Profit for the period of £0.6m (2012: £8.2m)
· Basic earnings per share 0.2p (2012: 2.9p); diluted earnings per share 0.2p (2012: 2.7p)

Operating highlights:

· Trading in first half concluded slightly ahead of expectations at time of 16 October trading update
· Wireless:
- Handset Testing impacted by slow start to year and delays to orders driven by significant industry consolidation
- Fundamental market size and drivers are undiminished
- Network Testing starting to see benefit from LTE roll-outs resulting in strong organic growth
· Travel:
- Encouraging increase in profits as it builds its recurring revenue base

Trading Update and Notice of Results

Anite plc ("Anite" or "the Group"), the leading provider of software solutions to the international wireless and leisure travel industries, announces a trading update for its financial year ended 30 April 2014. Anite intends to issue its final results on 2 July 2014.

Trading update

Trading in the final quarter of the year was encouraging and reflected the improvement anticipated at the time of the third quarter IMS issued on 19 February 2014. As a result, the Group expects to report full year revenue and adjusted1 operating profit in line with expectations. Cash generation in the second half was stronger than expected due to improved working capital management. Group net cash at 30 April 2014 stood at £6.0m (31 October 2013; net debt of £6.0m).

A strong final quarter ensured that Handset Testing achieved revenue in the second half broadly in line with the same period last year, as had been expected. Trading in Handset Testing was positively impacted by a number of the specific technology and customer-related catalysts identified at the time of the Half Yearly Report in December. This included the first significant benefits from the investments made in TD-LTE technology over the last few years.

Network Testing and Travel continued to perform well. Both businesses had good final quarters and have achieved full year expectations. Within Network Testing there has been strong market demand, particularly in Asia Pacific. Additionally, the Genetel acquisition, made in July 2013, has performed well following a successful integration.

Commenting, Christopher Humphrey, Chief Executive, said:

"The second half of the year has seen a progressive improvement in Handset Testing trading, as certain of the revenue catalysts we identified at the half year have started to bear fruit. Market conditions for Handset Testing continue to make it difficult to predict the precise timing of orders; however we are more encouraged by prospects for Handset Testing for the first half of the new financial year compared to those experienced last year."

Anite Travel update

Following the statement made on 20 February 2014 regarding Anite Travel, the Board confirms that it continues to investigate a potential disposal. There is no certainty that this process will result in a transaction, nor can there be any certainty of the value of any such transaction if it were to complete. Further updates will be provided as and when appropriate.

1 - Adjusted operating profit is defined as operating profit before share based payments, amortisation of acquired intangible assets and restructuring costs.



- Ends -

Final results

Financial highlights (adjusted) 1
· Revenue £109.2m (2013: £113.1m)
· EBITDA £24.0m (2013: £35.5m)
· Operating profit £15.3m (2013: £29.7m)
· Operating margin of 14% (2013: 26%)
· Profit before tax £14.9m (2013: £29.5m)
· Diluted adjusted earnings per share 3.9p (2013: 7.1p)
· Closing order book up 14% to £30.9m (2013: £26.9m)
· Strong operational cash conversion
· Net cash of £6.1m (April 2013: net debt £0.9m)

Statutory results
· Revenue from continuing operations £109.2m (2013: £113.1m)
· Profit from continuing operations £7.8m (2013: £15.6m)
· Profit from discontinued operations £4.5m (2013: £3.7m)
· Profit for the year £12.3m (2013: £19.3m)
· Basic statutory earnings per share from continuing operations 2.7p (2013: 5.5p)
· Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations 2.6p (2013: 5.1p)

Dividend maintained
· Proposed final dividend 1.265p (2013: 1.265p)
- total dividend 1.84p (2013: 1.84p)

Operating highlights1
· Results in line with expectations
· Handset Testing - progressive improvement in second half
· Network Testing - strong performance throughout year
· Maintained strong R&D investment £20.8m (2013: £18.9m)
· Travel disposal 29 May 2014 for total consideration £45m
- £43.3m cash received on completion
- Travel revenue £20.5m (2013: £19.4m); operating profit (before share-based payment charge) £5.5m (2013: £4.8m)

Current trading
· Trading ahead of the same period last year

StockMarketWire.com
Anite - a leading provider of software and hardware solutions to the international wireless market - says overall trading in the first quarter was ahead of the corresponding period last year.

Anite says Handset Testing delivered better revenue and adjusted operating profit compared to last year's disappointing start. Trading since the end of the quarter has continued at similar levels.

As anticipated, despite continued tough market conditions, product orders in Handset Testing for the first quarter were materially up on what was a weak comparative period last year, leading to stronger revenues.

Demand from Asia Pacific has remained high, continuing the trends seen in the second half of last year. Handset Testing has also benefited from the cost reduction actions taken at the end of last year.

Anite says Network Testing has had a slower start than last year with some market softness in North America, compounded by the translational currency effect of sterling strengthening 6% compared to the euro. However, momentum for the business is picking up with an encouraging pipeline of opportunities.

The group says that following the disposal of the travel business on 29 May, the its financial position remains very healthy, providing the financial resources to invest in growth opportunities. Group net cash at 31 August was £49.1m (30 April: £6.1m).

StockMarketWire.com
Anite has acquired Xceed Technologies Inc, a US based wireless network data analytics software company.

Xceed provides a leading range of wireless network optimisation and performance management products broadening Anite's product portfolio in the analytics and post-processing market, an area of significant operator focus and growth.

Highlights:

- Consideration of $30m paid in cash upon closing on a cash free/debt free basis from Anite's existing cash resources

- Up to $5m additional deferred cash consideration dependent on the achievement of performance targets in the years ending 30 April 2015 and 2016

- Xceed reported $11.8m revenue and $1.6m EBITDA in its financial year ended 31 December 2013

- The acquisition is expected to enhance Anite's adjusted earnings per share in the current financial year before transaction and integration costs

- Xceed will be integrated within Anite's Network Testing business where its products complement Anite's existing product portfolio.

Anite chief executive Christopher Humphrey said: "This acquisition transforms our Network Testing product portfolio in the increasingly important and growing data analytics market, which enables operators to identify and manage network performance issues.

"Anite's established market and technology leadership, and its substantial global sales and support footprint, combined with Xceed's acknowledged expertise and market leading software solutions, create a dedicated supplier with a more complete product offering.

"Xceed is an excellent addition to Anite's Network Testing business and the acquisition is expected to be enhancing to adjusted earnings. Anite retains significant financial resources to continue to invest in further growth opportunities."

ST of IC today - Testing a break-out


In the circumstances, I recommend buying Anite's shares now on a bid-offer spread of 91p to 91.5p, and have a year-end target price of 110p.

StockMarketWire.com
Electronic measurement instruments group Keysight Technologies has agreed a £388m deal for Anite.

The recommended cash offer of 126p per Anite share is a 22.3% premium to the closing price last night.

Anite's directors intend unanimously to recommend that shareholders vote to approve the deal.

Keysight president and chief executive Ron Nersesian said: "The combination of Keysight and Anite - two global leaders with complementary strengths - enables us to offer a broad portfolio of leading-edge solutions throughout the wireless research and development cycle. This will help us to expand our portfolio into the software layer for design and validation, and expand Keysight's position as a supplier for wireless design and validation tools. We look forward to welcoming the talented team at Anite and the value this combination will deliver to customers worldwide."

Anite chairman Clay Brendish said: "Over a number of years, the Anite team has executed successfully against our strategic plan to transform the business into a pure play global wireless test and measurement business. This has positively impacted our profitability and prospects and we have continued to develop our market leading positions and technological capabilities. Over the last five years, Anite shares have increased threefold.

The combination of Anite and Keysight has strong strategic logic, with Anite's software expertise strongly complementing Keysight's hardware expertise. Our market has been characterised by ongoing customer consolidation, increasing the importance of scale and strength to support customers around the globe and invest in major research and development programmes across the technology cycle. Keysight brings the scale and financial resources to continue to develop Anite's business.

"The offer will enable shareholders to crystallise a cash value for their shares at a meaningful premium to recent average prices, and enhances the opportunities for our customers and employees."

17 Jun Liberum Capital 100.00 Hold
17 Jun Northland... N/A Buy
17 Jun finnCap N/A Under Review

ST of IC today - I would sit tight for now as you have nothing to lose.

ST of IC today - It has been a productive week on the mergers and acquisitions front for companies on my watchlist with both SME finance company Inspired Capital (INSC:20p) and software company Anite (AIE:128p) attracting cash offers from predators. In both cases, my advice is to sit tight as there is a realistic chance that the initial bids for both companies could be eked up in the event of a rival offer emerging (Anite), or behind the scenes negotiations by the controlling shareholders (Inspired Capital).