Shares in Emis (EMIS) are up by a third since bottoming in mid-March – little wonder perhaps, given that the NHS (and related bodies), its top client, ramped up spending with the healthcare software provider by 11 per cent. Indeed, the company’s health division took up unscheduled project work from NHS Digital (NHSD) following the outbreak of coronavirus.
However, the Emis enterprise segment suffered in the second quarter, with sales down by almost a fifth to £24.1m in the absence of key licence deals during lockdown. The company also noted that its community pharmacy business struggled, as fewer patients went out to their local pharmacies during that period.
Yet the Emis health division posted 7 per cent growth in revenue, led partly by stronger demand for mobile working solutions during lockdown and higher levels of hardware sales. Across the group, recurring revenues also grew 5 per cent to £63.5m, now representing 81 per cent of the overall top-line.
The health segment maintained its leading position in the UK GP market, with a market share of 57 per cent, but its share dipped by 1 percentage point in both community and acute A&E, now sitting at 20 per cent and 22 per cent respectively.
Numis forecasts adjusted pre-tax profits of £38.2m and EPS of 49p for 2020, compared with £39.5m and 51.1p in 2019.
| EMIS (EMIS) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 1,082p | MARKET VALUE: | £685m | |
| TOUCH: | 1,082-1090p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,226p | LOW: 813p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.4% | PE RATIO: | 26 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 172p* | NET CASH: | £44.1m | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2019 | 79.8 | 12.1 | 16.6 | 15.6 |
| 2020 | 78.1 | 17.7 | 22.9 | 16.0 |
| % change | -2 | +46 | +38 | +3 |
| Ex-div: | 08 Oct | |||
| Payment: | 05 Nov | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £88.9m, or 140p a share | ||||
