Altron lifted headline earnings per share (Heps) in the six months to 31 August 2019 by 4% to 73c on the back of an 8% increase in revenue from continuing operations to R8.5-billion.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) rose by a healthy 19% to R803-million. It declared an interim dividend of 29c/share.

“Altron remains on track to achieve its five-year goal of doubling Ebitda by 2021,” the group said in a statement on Thursday.

“We accelerated the execution of our One Altron Strategy, which focuses on doing more with existing customers, while continuing to win new customers. This has delivered organic growth for our business,” said CEO Mteto Nyati.

Bytes UK was a standout performer, growing revenue by 13% and Ebitda by 46%. Offshore revenue now contributes 49% of Altron group revenue, an increase of five basis points from the previous reporting period.

Altron Nexus, on the other hand, was negatively impacted by the loss of a City of Tshwane broadband network contract, which was the subject of litigation.

Microsoft

The integration of Altron Karabina, which was acquired during the last financial year, was slower than expected. However, this acquisition “remains strategically relevant to the group given their capabilities in the fast-growth cloud and data analytics environment”.

“Altron Karabina aims to be one of the leading Microsoft licensing solutions partners.”

Altron Bytes Systems Integration, meanwhile, saw a “successful turnaround, with Ebitda up by 36% through its focus on cloud services, the Internet of things, data analytics and security”.

“Our focus will remain on organic growth, supplemented by acquiring select small-to medium-sized businesses in our focus areas, which will lead to enhanced capabilities and expanded geographic footprint,” Nyati said. – © 2019 NewsCentral Media