Sanderson expects trading results in line with expectations
SOFTWARE and IT services group, Sanderson has said its full year trading results will be in line with expectations.
The Coventry-based group, which has an office in Sheffield, specialises in multi-channel retail and manufacturing markets in the UK and Ireland. It said in a trading update that group revenues for the year to September 30, 2013 were expected to be slightly above last year at around £13.8m (2012: £13.37m). Gross margin is likely to have improved at 87% (2012: 83.6%) and operating profit is in line with market expectations.
The group said it had continued to invest in the further development of its businesses as well as on selected niche markets within the manufacturing sector. Product investment has been concentrated on further extending the products and services which are based upon the group’s own proprietary solutions, especially those which enable warehouse and manufacturing automation, together with solutions designed for deployment on mobile devices, including smart phones and tablets.
“By supplying customers with more of the group’s own products and services, gross margins have continued to improve, rising to over 87% from 83.6% in 2012. Sanderson has also continued to expand its sales and marketing capabilities and as a result of its improved competitive market position, the value of contracts signed with new customers during the year has risen by 10% to over £1.6m (2012: £1.46m; 2011: £1.27m),” it said.
In order to augment the group’s organic growth, two acquisitions have been completed within the past three months. These comprise Catan Marketing Ltd, which provides e-commerce solutions under the PRIAM trading name One iota Ltd, which took place at the start of the financial year in a deal costing £5.43m.
In outlook, it said: “Whilst general economic conditions have shown some slight improvement in 2013, the outlook continues to be uncertain and business confidence, although increasing, still appears quite fragile. The group’s strong order book, improved market position and the two recent acquisitions provide the board with an expectation that Sanderson will achieve significant progress during the current financial year.”
The group is scheduled to release its full year results on November 26, 2013.
