IT services firm Softcat says that it anticipated that its operating profits for the year will be “materially ahead” of prior expectations, citing favourable market conditions. On the news, shares rose 8% in early trading.
The FTSE 250 group raised expectations for its adjusted operating profit for the year to 31 July, after saying that it had experienced a “strong” performance in the third quarter.
And since then, Softcat said the group has “continued to perform exceptionally well”. It added: “Market conditions have been very favourable and growth against the prior year has accelerated.”
Last year, Softcat saw its shares rise by more than 70%, and it has more than doubled its market cap since its public listing back in 2015.
The company's full-year results are scheduled to be published in October. For the first six months of the year, revenue jumped 25% year-on-year to £472m for the period ending 31 January. Gross profit was up 22% to £75m and operating profit went up 15% to £24m.
The VAR said customer numbers grew 6%, and that gross profit per customer was up 15%. Martin Courtney, an analyst at TechMarketView, said at the time: “This indicates that Softcat is doing a good job of upselling additional products and services to its existing client base.”
