Strong sales growth at Accesso Technology (ACSO) beat analysts’ expectations for 2017, but two significant acquisitions dented reported pre-tax profits for the smart ticketing and queuing software provider. Following the $35m (£25m) purchase of Ingresso in March, the group then paid £62.3m for TE2, a specialist in customer experience management software. Even so, underlying cash profits rose 29 per cent to $24.6m, bringing the cash profit compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to 32.2 per cent over seven years, against a revenue CAGR of 23.9 per cent.
Accesso’s traditional markets are theme and water park operators. During 2017, its Prism product was key to the launch of the world’s first 'queueless' water park in Florida, a development which management believe could "redefine" an industry which counts long queue lines as the single greatest source of attendee satisfaction.
Elsewhere, at ski resorts and live events, Accesso’s ShoWare product was incorporated into the Ingresso platform, allowing ShoWare customers to cross-sell tickets on various eCommerce sites. And TE2 is also already earning its keep, driving Accesso’s entrance into healthcare and patient experience management - as demonstrated by a recently-inked deal with a US hospital group.
Analysts at Numis forecast cash profits of $34.3m and EPS of 73.8¢ this year, against $24.6m and 56.9¢ in 2017.
| ACCESSO TECHNOLOGY (ACSO) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 2,265p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 600m | |
| TOUCH: | 2,250-2,280p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 2,365p | LOW: 1,560p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | NIL | PE RATIO: | 78 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 656¢* | NET CASH: | $12.5m | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
| 2013** | 61.4 | 3.2 | 14.7 | nil |
| 2014 | 75.1 | 5.1 | 18.5 | nil |
| 2015 | 93.2 | 7.2 | 24.5 | nil |
| 2016 | 103 | 10.1 | 34.0 | nil |
| 2017 | 133 | 7.2 | 40.8 | nil |
| % change | +30 | -29 | +20 | nil |
| Ex-div: | n/a | |||
| Payment: | n/a | |||
| £1 = $1.41. *Includes intangible assets of $198m or 748¢ per share. **14-month period. | ||||
