Citation profits surge 60% as owners mull options
CITATION, the Cheshire company which provides small businesses with employment law and health and safety advice, has reported a 63% surge in profits.
The strong performance at Wilmslow company comes amid fresh speculation that Citiation is up for sale with a price tag of around £40m.
TheBusinessDesk.com understands the company has engaged business advisory firm PwC’s London corporate finance team to conduct the process.
Pre-tax profits rose from £2.7m to a record £4.4m as turnover in 2011 grew 11% to £15.4m.
Citiation said last year it has ambition to grow earnings to £8.5m and turnover to £20m by 2014.
The business has around 200 staff – the majority based at its heaquarters. As welll as SMEs it also acts for professionals such as doctors, dentists and vets’ practices.
It competes with Peninsula Business Services and Bibby Consulting and Support in a fast-growing outsourced advisory market place.
The company offers its clients a comprehensive review of their existing health and safety and employment systems, advice on the application of its policies, and then backs it up with an advice guarantee, which will pay out a specified sum, should the client face tribunal or prosecution.
In a review of the year’s performance finance director Julie Moran said: “The company continued to grow its new business acquisitions, with renewal business remaining strong.
“The company is confident of meeting the challenges of attracting new business because of the size of the market, the heavy regulatory burden on small and medium-sized companies, the deployment of new routes to markets and the enhanced development fo the service offerings using technology.”
Citation which is owned by its management team and a number of other private shareholders, including financial services entrepreneur Paul Hogarth, paid its shareholders an interim dividend of £430,270 during the year – in 2010 they shared just over £4m.
