Donald Trump's emergence as the frontrunner for the Republican nomination was first revealed in a poll from CBS News and YouGov (YOU) - a coup that raised awareness of the market research and data analysis group. Combined with international expansion and strong demand for data-driven intelligence, adjusted operating profits rose 29 per cent to £4.3m in the reported period.
Management has focused on 'syndicated' products and services that leverage YouGov's pool of 4.2m panellists and can be sold to multiple customers. They include BrandIndex, which measures people's perceptions of particular brands; Profiles, a media planning and audience analysis tool; and research service Omnibus. Strong interest from clients including Standard Life, Auto Trader and Tesco underpinned a 32 per cent rise in sales of data products and services, widening the group's adjusted operating margin from 9 to 10 per cent.
Sales in the larger custom research segment rose 6 per cent. The main sore spot was Germany; a challenging economic backdrop and tepid demand for custom research among financial services groups meant underlying revenues slid 3 per cent there. Broker Numis lifted its forecasts and now expects pre-tax profits of £10.9m in the year to July 2016, giving EPS of 8p (£9.1m and 6.7p).
| YOUGOV (YOU) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 135p | MARKET VALUE: | £141m | |
| TOUCH: | 133-137p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 154p | LOW: 103p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.7% | PE RATIO: | 29 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 64p* | NET CASH: | £10.1m | |
| Half-year to 31 Jan | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 36.2 | 0.02 | -0.3 | nil |
| 2016 | 41.5 | 1.93 | 1.2 | nil |
| % change | +15 | - | - | - |
*Includes intangible assets of £49.3m, or 47p a share | ||||
