Ansys interim revenue slides on constrained trading conditions

Ansys, a diversified digital technology solutions provider listed on the Alt-X, on Wednesday reported a 23.1% decline in revenue to R314.2 million for the interim period ended September 2017, amid constrained trading conditions.

As a result, EBITDA slowed from R57.2 million to R47.3 million, representing a decrease of 17.3%, it said.

Highlights:

• Gross profit margin increased from 24.9% to 31.7% (up 6.8%)
• Profit after tax decreased from R34.9 million to R28 million (down 19.7%)
• Headline Earnings per share decreased from 7.57 cents to 6.11 cents (down 19.3%)
• Basic Earnings per share decreased from 7.59 cents to 6.08 cents (down 19.9%)
• Tangible Net Asset Value increased from 25.6 cents to 38.8 cents (up 51.3%)

Ansys said the telecommunication segment experienced an upsurge in the previous reporting period, with high growth driven by the FTTH (fibre-to-the-home) roll out. A subsequent slowdown by some of the network operators in the FTTH roll out impacted negatively on this, resulting in revenue of R171.7 million in the current period, which is 6% down from R182 million in the previous interim period.

Segment profit decreased from R29.3 million to R28.8 million, down by 1.8%.

Ansys said it is actively repositioning for future growth in the short to medium term, which is expected to arise from the digitisation of operations, in all of the sectors in which the group operates. The repositioning of the business towards offering digital technology solutions is expected to yield benefits as major clients continue to digitise their operations.

“In the telecommunications sector, we expect the market growth trend to continue, albeit at a slower rate than previously. Current investments made in expanding our offering beyond passive connectivity to include active equipment, are expected to improve earnings,” it said.

Demand for cyber security solutions remains strong in both the local and international markets as clients become more security-conscious due to the massive increase in cybercrime.

“In addition, the more the world becomes more digitally connected, the more demand for cyber security solutions is expected to grow. Investments made in growing the group’s cyber security solutions are envisaged to provide opportunities for growth,” the group said.

Read: Ansys revenue soars on the back of fibre optic network growth