TIDMACSO
RNS Number : 6394L
Accesso Technology Group PLC
14 September 2021
14 September 2021
accesso (R) Technology Group plc
("accesso" or the "Group")
INTERIM RESULTS
for the six-month period ended 30 June 2021
accesso Technology Group plc (AIM: ACSO) , the premier
technology solutions provider to leisure, entertainment and
cultural markets, today announces interim results for the six
months ended 30 June 2021 ('H1 2021').
Commenting on the results, Steve Brown, Chief Executive Officer
of accesso, said:
"Despite the challenges of the past 18 months, these results
show Accesso is squarely back on track. Our customers, staff and
shareholders have stood firmly behind us during an incredibly
turbulent time. We have remained steadfast in supporting our
clients' evolving needs; we have used the opportunity to further
sharpen our strategic focus; and we have started to capture a sharp
uptick in demand as our customers look to expand their use of
revenue-generating technology. As a result, our financial
performance during the first half of 2021 exceeded our previous
expectations. Our revenue growth was extremely strong, and our Cash
EBITDA result is significantly ahead of our initial expectations.
With robust demand continuing into the start of the second half we
are anticipating full year revenue of not less than 2019 levels
alongside significantly improved profitability".
Six months Six months Six months
ended ended ended
30 June 30 June 30 June
2021 2020 % change 2019 % change
Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited
($m) ($m) ($m)
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Group Revenue 50.7 24.6 106.1% 50.7 (0.1%)
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Ticketing
and distribution 31.7 16.8 88.7% 35.8 (11.5%)
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Guest Experience 19.0 7.8 143.9% 14.9 27.3%
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Cash EBITDA 9.8 (10.4) 194.7% 1.0 881.9%
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Statutory
profit/(loss)
before tax 0.9 (18.5) 104.6% (4.6) 118.5%
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Net cash /
(net debt) 33.2 30.8 7.5% (15.2) 318.1%
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Adjusted basic
EPS (cents) 6.39 (37.94) 116.8% 14.21 (55.1%)
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Basic earnings
per share
(cents) 1.91 (53.17) 103.6% (12.04) 115.8%
----------- ----------- --------- ------------- ---------
Footnotes:
(1) Cash EBITDA: operating profit before the deduction of amortisation,
depreciation, acquisition costs, deferred and contingent
payments, and costs related to share-based payments less
capitalised development costs paid in cash as per the consolidated
cash flow statement (as detailed below and in note 5 to
the Interim Financial Information)
(2) Net cash is calculated as cash and cash equivalents less
borrowings.
(3) Adjusted basic earnings per share is calculated after adjusting
operating profit for impairment of intangible assets, amortisation
on acquired intangibles, deferred and contingent consideration
linked to continued employment, acquisition and aborted
sale expenses, finance charges relating to deferred and
contingent liabilities and share-based payments, net of
tax at the effective rate for the period on the taxable
adjusted items (as detailed in note 6 to the Interim Financial
Information)
(4) H1 2019 is included as a comparative period due to the exceptional
impact of COVID-19 on the H1 2020 results. H1 2019 represents
a period without disruption from COVID-19.
First half highlights
-- Outstanding financial performance: A refreshed and refocused
accesso drove revenue back to H1 2019 levels faster than
expected. We captured exceptional demand across the product
portfolio and saw record transactional volumes in our key
markets. Cash EBITDA of $9.8m represents significant growth
on 2019 resulting from higher margin revenue growth, as well
as a more effective operating structure and temporarily lower
costs.
-- Innovative technology set enabling customer recovery: Virtual
Queuing uptake drove Guest Experience revenue above H1 2019
levels, leading to record results. Demand for contactless
technology and online transactions supported strong eCommerce
growth in key markets with transaction volumes significantly
ahead of H1 2019.
-- Change in customer attitudes to technology adoption: eCommerce
is now seen as critical to operator success, with 36 venues
signing on for online ticketing solutions in H1 2021 compared
to 16 during H1 2020. The number of customers adopting multiple
accesso technologies rose to 55 from 50 in the first half.
-- Results benefit from rightsized and realigned operational
platform: Cost action and structural realignment taken by
new management team is now enabling enhanced strategic focus
as well as more profitable and cash generative performance.
High demand in the labour market slowed hiring for open positions
and resulted in lower than anticipated staffing costs in
the period.
-- New debt facility committed by the Group on 19 March 2021
with Investec Bank PLC, all bank loan borrowings with Lloyds
Bank PLC were settled and the Group now has access to an
unutilised GBP18m revolving facility with a term of 3 years
to March 2024.
Outlook & Guidance
-- Performance trend set to continue: Key regions are now open
and delivering excellent performance. As announced in our
8(th) September trading update, our performance during the
key months of July, August, and through the Labor Day holiday
period has been particularly strong and underpins our confidence
in exceeding previous expectations for the full year. accesso
Passport(R) and accesso LoQueue (R) delivered combined revenue
growth of 50.9% in July 2021 against July 2019.
-- Continued return to normal operating cost level : Profitability
has increased more quickly than previously expected due to
a lag in our return to normal operating cost levels and the
recovery of our high margin products outpacing those with
lower margins. As the Group continues to scale to address
the greater revenue opportunity created by the uptick in
technology demand, underlying administrative expenses are
expected to rise in the region of 8-12% on an annualised
basis in 2022. In FY22 we also expect a return towards our
historic product mix.
-- COVID-19 assumptions: We expect travel and tourism to remain
somewhat restricted through H2, with capacity restrictions
and reservation requirements remaining in place in certain
regions, especially in APAC. Whilst our full year revenue
expectations assume trends for the balance of year remain
consistent with those underpinning our recent trading levels,
the impact of new variants on client operations is unpredictable
and we continue to monitor potential changes in our operating
environment.
-- Guidance: Provided we see no material impact from an escalation
in COVID-19 restrictions in North America or other key markets,
we expect 2021 full year revenue of not less than $117M which
represents full recovery to 2019 trading performance. With
continued strong demand across the business, we expect Cash
EBITDA to be significantly ahead of market expectations for
both the half and the full year. The Group is currently deploying
additional resources across technology implementation, product
development and customer support to calibrate for the new
demand. As previously signaled, these investments will have
a limited impact on Cash EBITDA in 2021; their full annualised
effect will be felt in the 2022 financial year.
The information contained within this announcement is deemed to
constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse
Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ("MAR"). Upon the publication of this
announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in
the public domain
The Company will be hosting a webcast presentation for analysts
at 1pm. Analysts and institutional investors are also able to
request a copy of the presentation and audio webcast conference
details by contacting accesso@fticonsulting.com. A copy of the
presentation made to analysts will be available for download from
the Group's website, shortly after the conclusion of the
meeting.
For further information, please contact:
accesso Technology Group plc +44 (0)118 934 7400
Steve Brown, Chief Executive Officer
Fern MacDonald, Chief Financial Officer
Numis Securities Limited +44 (0)20 7260 1000
Simon Willis, Hugo Rubinstein, Mark Lander
FTI Consulting +44 (0) 203 727 1000
Matt Dixon, Adam Davidson, Chris Birt
About accesso Technology Group
At accesso, we believe technology has the power to redefine the
guest experience. Our patented and award-winning solutions drive
increased revenue for attraction operators while improving the
guest experience. Currently serving over 1,000 clients in more than
30 countries around the globe, accesso's solutions help our clients
streamline operations, generate increased revenues, improve guest
satisfaction and harness the power of data to educate business and
marketing decisions.
accesso stands as the leading technology provider of choice for
tomorrow's attractions, venues and institutions. We invest heavily
in research and development because our industries demand it, our
clients benefit from it and it makes a positive impact on the guest
experience. Our innovative technology solutions allow venues to
increase the volume and range of on-site spending and to drive
increased transaction-based revenue through cutting edge ticketing,
point-of-sale, virtual queuing, distribution and experience
management software.
Furthermore, COVID-19 has highlighted the benefits our
technology is able to bring to venues from facilitating social
distancing using our robust and sophisticated virtual queuing
solutions; reservation systems delivered through our agile
eCommerce platform to enable capacity management, taking queues
away from front gates; and attraction eateries utilising our
contactless food and beverage offerings.
Many of our team members come from backgrounds working within
the attractions and cultural industry. In this way, we are
experienced operators who run a technology company serving
attractions operators, versus a technology company that happens to
serve the market. Our staff understand the day-to-day operations of
managing complex venues and the challenges this creates, and
together we strive to provide our clients and their guests with
technology that empowers them to do more and enjoy more. From our
agile development team to our dedicated client service specialists,
every team member knows that their passion, integrity, commitment,
teamwork and innovation are what drive our success.
accesso is a public company, listed on AIM: a market operated by
the London Stock Exchange. For more information visit
www.accesso.com . Follow accesso on Twitter , LinkedIn and Facebook
.
Chief Executive's Review
A period of recovery for an industry transformed
In the first half of 2021 our industry has started to recover
following the challenge and disruption of last year. We have been
grateful to see many of our markets reopen and our customers'
guests return to their attractions. Most venues are still
restricted in one way or another, but their gates are open, and
their businesses have come back to life. For accesso, this has
meant a return to meaningful trading and a revitalisation of our
people and teams.
I am immensely proud of the energy and commitment our people
have shown in delivering work of the highest quality and creativity
for our customers. They have bought in wholeheartedly to a
reorganisation which has enabled us to benefit from the near-term
snap-back of customer demand and ensured accesso is best positioned
to keep growing sustainably into the future. The efforts have
brought our first half revenues back into line with pre-pandemic
levels much faster than expected and reinforced some of our
strongest customer relationships at the same time.
Having adapted their attractions to facilitate online
reservations, contactless transactions and social distancing, many
of these customers are now also looking at the depth and breadth of
their technology footprints with fresh eyes. As has been the case
in many industries, the pandemic has accelerated a gathering trend
in the leisure and entertainment space towards digital
transformation, and in our case, has helped showcase the benefits
of technology when it comes to operating seamless, efficient
attractions which deliver great guest experiences. While we expect
revenue from some recent growth areas like online reservation to
gradually recede as normal conditions return, we believe the
overall shift towards greater technology adoption is
irreversible.
Our view of market conditions so far in 2021
Since the start of 2021 we have seen the continued reopening of
attractions and the partial easing of capacity restrictions in many
of our key markets. While we still await the end of Government
mandated lockdowns in the Asia-Pacific region and the return of the
live entertainment segment globally, most of the North American and
European markets are now open for business. This uptick in activity
saw us sign with 18 new venues over the first half.
The reopening of our key markets has allowed visitors to return
and operators have been working to reduce their cost-to-serve.
Although certain segments of attraction visitors, such as group
outings and corporate events, have not regained momentum, we
observe most venues reaching approximately 85% of 2019 volumes.
With capacity and social contact restrictions still in place, they
have moved quickly towards eCommerce and virtual queueing solutions
which led overall demand for our services to surge well beyond
historic levels. accesso Passport enabled the sale of 56.4m tickets
and reservations, up 76.1% on H1 2019, and accesso LoQueue assisted
1.2m guests with its queuing technology, up 60.5% on H1 2019.
Through July and August, we have seen these trends continue with
the ongoing easing of restrictions providing a boost to already
strong trading. Our online reservation revenues have been very
strong, and we have continued to see record demand for our virtual
queuing technology. Our accesso Passport and accesso LoQueue
solutions delivered revenue up 50.9% in July 2021 against July
2019.
An operational footprint to power our future growth
In the early stages of the pandemic, we acted quickly to right
size our operational footprint to ensure the resilience of our
business through an uncertain period. This meant introducing
shorter working weeks for many of our staff and making significant
cost reductions across the board. We also used the temporary pause
in trading activity to realign our business, remove duplication,
increase accountability, and deploy resources more effectively in
support of future growth. We are now seeing the benefit of this
action.
Our decision to create a single group for all software engineers
working on our various eCommerce solutions is now delivering more
orchestrated and efficient results, and the alignment of our
operational teams with key market segments like the Ski industry
has seen us deliver 11 expansions with existing accesso Passport
customers in the first half. In this way our technology is helping
both drive and facilitate the market trend towards eCommerce, with
venues eager to push customers towards online activity that helps
them manage COVID-19 restrictions and allows for more effective
management of labour and resources.
We have also improved our operational processes to help us
benefit from this more considered organisational structure,
introducing a single collaboration system and redesigning how
customer system enhancement requests move through our workflow. As
we indicated in our 2020 preliminary results, this process has
transformed accesso from a company operating in multiple product
silos to a business with a single operational platform. We are now
seeing results from the programmes we have implemented to help us
support our customers in a more connected way. For example, during
H1 we have made it easier for an important multi-site customer to
transact with its guests by rolling out Apple Pay and Google Pay
across its global estate.
In recent months, the combination of eased pandemic restrictions
and the overall shift in customer technology preferences has
enabled us to start the process of rescaling our employee base to
meet a significantly expanded opportunity. Importantly, we are not
simply throwing people at this new demand. We have continued with
the strategic deployment of resources in the areas of greatest
opportunity, investing in technology implementation, product
development and customer support to ensure we maintain a
sustainable operating footprint commensurate with the opportunity
ahead of us. As noted in our July 2021 trading statement, the full
annualised effect of these investments will be felt in the 2022
financial year, where we will also see less of a benefit from
overall pandemic related cost reductions such as travel and office
expenses.
Technology innovation enabling the new paradigm for our
customers
During 2021 we have continued to build on our existing product
set to help customers navigate the evolving demands of their
guests. Our new Head of Product is overseeing these efforts and we
have seen a number of important product-led developments impact our
results.
The strength of our virtual queueing proposition continues to
validate the work undertaken in recent years to improve and
modernise our technology in this area. We have seen excellent
progress with Qsmart (R) , the mobile instance of our virtual
queuing product, which is now widely deployed parks alongside the
accesso Prism wearable device with our largest North American
customer across nine of its theme parks. Qsmart has seen high
adoption rates which have now reached 37%, with the ability to
access queuing technology via mobile dramatically enhancing its
potential reach and significantly increasing its ease-of-use for
the visitor. It also more easily allows us to include additional
and customisable capability including payments, and it reduces the
operational cost of providing and maintaining Prism bands which
were previously used to deliver the service. Parc Asterix, a new
customer signed for 100% virtual queuing in 2020, has now
transitioned to a paid premium service for 2021.
We continue to make progress in developing our contactless
solutions which are helping venues facilitate social distancing
while also reducing overall costs. A major part of this story is
the growth in our mobile Food and Beverage proposition, which has
continued to gain traction with our client base in the first half
of the year. Our growth in this area is an important component of
the progress we're making in eCommerce overall, with growth in
ticketing supplementing new revenue from our online reservation
capability. While the portion of this revenue coming from guests
with season passes won't repeat in post-pandemic conditions, our
success demonstrates how quickly we are able to adapt our product
set and move quickly to help customers capitalise on new
opportunities.
Part of our strategic focus remains on delivering innovation
that supports cross-selling across our product set. During the
first half we have added an API Gateway between accesso Siriusware
and accesso Passport which has dramatically increased data
throughput to support the high volume of eCommerce demand between
the products. All of our combination clients now either have or are
actively involved in adding this capability to the services they
take from us. Our development team is also in the process of
building a ground-up accesso Siriusware API designed to optimise
client performance and prepare the ground for future integration
needs. Innovation like this enables us to continue to drive multi
value adding accesso solutions across our customer base.
Starting and ending with our people
Our people remain at the core of our business which has never
been more evident than the past 18 months where their unwavering
commitment, determination and collective qualities is what has made
this period a much-welcomed success. In recognition of their
efforts, we granted long term equity incentive awards to our senior
leaders during the half with conditions over continued employment,
share price and cash EBITDA performance. In August 2021, we also
granted share awards to all other staff which will vest with
continued employment. Providing our people with an opportunity to
participate in our equity and aligning their goals with our success
continues to be a key component of our employment proposition.
Outlook and Guidance
The start we have made to the second half of the year indicates
we will finish 2021 strongly. Apart from the APAC region which
continues to experience a high level of government restrictions,
our key regions are delivering very strong results. We are also
involved in a range of promising new business conversations which
give us confidence in our ability to deliver well over the
remainder of the year.
We expect travel and tourism to remain restricted through the
second half and into 2022 and this will have some financial impact
on our business. Our guidance assumes these restrictions are
relatively light in Europe and North America and is contingent on
there being no return of full lockdown conditions given the
progress of the ongoing vaccination programmes in these
markets.
Provided we see no material impact from an escalation in
COVID-19 restrictions in North America or other key markets, we
expect H2 2021 revenue performance to be at least in line with 2019
levels. With continued strong demand across the business, we expect
another period of strong Cash EBITDA performance for H2 2021 and
full year revenues of not less than 2019 levels.
As set out in our trading update on 8 September, the rapid
growth in revenue alongside a slower return to normal operating
expenses will result in Cash EBITDA being significantly ahead of
current market expectations for both the half and the full year.
The Group is currently deploying additional resources across
technology implementation, product development and customer support
to calibrate for the new demand. As previously signaled, these
investments will have a limited impact on Cash EBITDA in 2021;
their full annualised effect will be felt in the 2022 financial
year.
Financial Review
In the first half of 2021 the Group delivered record financial
performance in our key metric of Cash EBITDA as COVID-19
restrictions began to ease in our key markets. Our revenue
performance was also well ahead of our initial expectations.
The cost actions and structural realignment taken during 2020
has allowed the group to be more profitable and cash generative,
whilst acknowledging we have open positions to fill as revenue
activity continues to scale. Our customer venues did begin to
reopen at full scale during early parts of H1 2021 and we have been
able to benefit from latent consumer demand through our key
geographies and markets and the deeper customer relationships we
worked hard to build throughout the pandemic.
We have assessed the performance of H1 2021 against H1 2019 due
to the impact of the COVID 19 on H1 2020. Whilst we provide H1 2020
comparators in the tables presented below we draw more meaningful
and valuable analysis against H1 2019.
Key performance indicators and alternative performance
measures
The Group uses key performance indicators to measure and control
both financial and operational performance. Ticket volumes,
revenues, margins, costs, cash and sales pipeline are trended to
ensure plans are on track and corrective actions taken, where
necessary. See below for a discussion of the metrics, their
definitions and reconciliation to IFRS statutory measures. Product
development performance is also monitored and tracked through
measurement against agreed milestones. In addition, further key
performance indicators include the proportion of business that is
delivered via mobile technology and the sales mix of services
offered.
The Board utilises consistent alternative performance measures
("APMs") in evaluating and presenting the results of the business,
including Cash EBITDA, adjusted basic earnings per share, net cash,
underlying administrative expenditure and repeatable and
non-repeatable revenue analysis.
The Board views these APMs as more representative of the Group's
performance as they remove certain items which are not reflective
of the underlying business, including acquisition expenses,
amortisation related to acquired intangibles, deferred and
contingent payments related to acquisitions, changes to earn-out
considerations and share-based payments. The APMs help ensure the
Group is focused on translating sales growth into profit. By making
these adjustments, the Group is more readily comparable to a
business that does not have the same acquisition history and
share-based payment policy. Additionally, these are the measures
commonly used by the Group's investor base. These APMs are
reconciled to the statutory numbers in notes 5 and 6 to the Interim
Financial Information.
Key Financial Metrics
Group revenue for the first half of 2021 was $50.7m (H1 2020:
$24.6m; H1 2019: $50.7m), in line with H1 2019 and 106.1% up on H1
2020.
Ticketing and Distribution revenue was 11.5% below H1 2019 due
primarily to revenue reductions experienced in the lower margin
live entertainment area. The UK theatre sector was significantly
impacted by restrictions throughout the period and globally our
live entertainment and distribution business was $9.1m down on H1
2019. Excluding the Live Entertainment segment, our Ticketing
Distribution segment was $4.8m up on H1 2019. Despite this revenue
reduction, the Ticketing and Distribution segment still delivered
excellent gross profit performance, primarily due to an excellent
period for accesso Passport, one of the Group's higher margin
transactional revenue streams which delivered a $6.3m revenue
increase on H1 2019, representing a 40.6% gain.
Guest Experience delivered revenue growth of 27.3% on H1 2019 as
accesso LoQueue's transactional-based queuing products saw a period
of significant demand. They also saw higher customer penetration at
venues with 7.0% of all guests using one of our queueing products
compared with 3.1% in H1 2019. Alongside this The Experience
Engine(TM) (TE2) business delivered a solid result in excess of H1
2019 due to continued confidence in bespoke professional technology
offerings, with large customers in the ski, theme parks and cruise
ship markets using our services.
This impressive revenue performance enabled Guest Experience and
Ticketing and Distribution to deliver absolute gross profit
increases of 69.8% and 4.1% to $13.0m and $28.0m respectively when
compared to H1 2019.
Whilst COVID-19 remained a top priority for all of our customers
and mandated capacity restrictions remain in place, the financial
impact in H1 2021 was more limited than in H1 2020, and in some
instances encouraged our customers to harness the use of our
technologies to address challenges such as capacity restrictions,
removing physical queues, touchless technologies and eCommerce. Our
USA and Canadian revenue benefited from an excellent start to the
year in the ski market with the regions experiencing fewer
restrictions. Providing existing ski customers with an eCommerce
solution has been a key success in the half with 11 customers
adopting accesso Passport eCommerce to excellent mutual benefit. We
have experienced an increasing appetite in the ski market for
eCommerce and currently provide 28% of our ski customers with
accesso Passport. The adoption of our eCommerce solution has helped
drive incremental revenues to our Ticketing and Distribution
segment and providing our remaining ski customers with eCommerce is
a medium-term strategy of the Group. Apart from the state of
California which only reopened outdoor attractions from 30 April
2021, large parts of the USA's non-ski market was also open during
much of H1 2021. Our results show they experienced significant
levels of pent-up demand, delivering an extremely successful period
of trading. Our live entertainment customers in the USA have shown
encouraging volumes from June 2021 onwards with volumes in line
with 2019 for comparative months. We have also managed to go live
with 23 accesso ShoWare(SM) new customers, compared to 11 during H1
2020.
In the UK, outdoor attractions reopened from April 2021 and
demonstrated encouraging transactional volumes during the second
quarter. Live entertainment remained closed for the majority of H1
2021, opening with partial capacities from May 2021 and then at
full capacities from July 2021. These conditions resulted in a
significant revenue reduction of $7.1m on H1 2019. Other European
countries mandated further countrywide closures during April and
May 2021 while Central and South America experienced a number of
restrictions throughout the first half which significantly hampered
their ability to trade.
Australia and South Pacific started 2021 with excellent volumes
delivering $2.4m of revenue in the first half, up from $0.9m in H1
2019. The region saw excellent performance from accesso LoQueue,
accesso Passport and TE2, although from July 2021 it has seen a
return to statewide lockdowns, impacting our transactional volumes.
Importantly, we are now in our off-peak season for the region and
the impact is therefore immaterial on our Group revenues.
Revenue on a segmental and geographical basis was as
follows:
Six months Six months Six months
ended 30 ended ended
June 2021 30 June 30 June
2020 2019
Unaudited
Unaudited Unaudited
$000 $000 $000
----------- ----------- -----------
Ticketing and Distribution 31,716 16,806 35,835
Guest Experience 18,938 7,766 14,877
Total revenue 50,654 24,572 50,712
=========== =========== ===========
$000 $000 $000
----------- ----------- -----------
United Kingdom 4,947 2,330 12,001
Other Europe 659 484 1,610
Australia/South Pacific 2,418 990 1,502
USA and Canada 42,318 20,098 33,598
Central and South America 312 670 2,001
Total revenue 50,654 24,572 50,712
=========== =========== ===========
Revenue quality
The following is an analysis of the Group's revenue visibility.
Transactional revenue consisting of Virtual Queuing, Ticketing and
eCommerce is defined as revenue earned as either a fixed amount per
sale of an item, such as a ticket sold by a customer or as a
percentage of revenue generated by a venue operator. Normally this
revenue is repeatable where a multi-year agreement exists and
purchasing patterns by venue guests do not significantly change, as
they did in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. Other repeatable
revenue is defined as revenue, excluding transactional revenue,
that is expected to be earned through each year of a customer's
agreement, without the need for additional sales activity, such as
maintenance and support revenue. Non-repeatable revenue is revenue
that occurs one-time (e.g., up-front licence fees) or is not
repeatable based upon the current agreement (e.g., billable
professional services hours) and is unlikely to be repeatable
without additional successful sales execution by accesso . Other
revenue consists of hardware sales and other revenue that may or
may not be repeatable with limited sales activity if customer
behaviour remains consistent.
The Group's transactional revenue stream has rebounded better
than anticipated during H1 2021 to $35.6m, down only 2.2% on a
normal period of trade represented by H1 2019. In certain markets,
such as the USA, where restrictions in our key states were largely
removed, we have significantly outperformed H1 2019. This validates
that this revenue is typically repeatable in nature when trading
conditions are less impacted by government mandated restrictions.
We have also gained from latent demand and a shift in consumers
behaviour to purchasing online, something our attraction operators
have welcomed as it facilitates the ability to manage and monitor
capacities. During the period we have derived transactional revenue
of $2.6m from online reservation fees which we do not expect to
recur at the same level in future periods.
Professional services revenue grew strongly on both H1 2019 and
H1 2020, a credit to our exceptional team which continued to
deliver excellent bespoke technology solutions to the ski, cruise
and attractions markets. As a byproduct of this bespoke development
work, we have also gained traction in repeatable platform fees for
hosting mobile apps which has grown on H1 2019 and H1 2020 to $1.3m
for the period. We have seen increased demand for touchless
technology such as our mobile food and beverage apps which both
reduce physical contact points and help our attraction operators to
remove labour costs.
The period also benefited from $2.1m of hardware sales following
a $1.4m sale of Prism 2 wristbands which helped us deliver accesso
LoQueue transactional revenue. Hardware sales also include
equipment related to the addition of 6 new implementations for
attractions utilising our accesso Siriusware point of sale
systems.
Six months Six months Six months
ended 30 ended 30 ended
June 2021 June 2020 30 June
Unaudited Unaudited 2019 Unaudited
$000 $000 % $000 %
Virtual queuing 10,152 2,270 347.1% 8,912 13.9%
Ticketing and eCommerce 22,815 9,681 135.7% 27,458 (16.9%)
Reservation fees 2,614 121 2,060.3% - -
----------- ----------- ----------------
Transactional revenue 35,581 12,072 194.7% 36,370 (2.2%)
Maintenance and
support 3,640 3,967 (8.2%) 4,511 (19.3%)
Platform fees 1,256 1,079 16.4% 578 117.5%
----------- ----------- ----------------
Total Repeatable 40,477 17,118 136.5% 41,459 (2.4%)
----------- ----------- ----------------
Licence revenue 913 1,253 (27.1%) 1,777 (48.6%)
Professional services 6,752 5,155 31.0% 6,116 10.4%
----------- ----------- ----------------
Non-repeatable revenue 7,665 6,408 19.6% 7,893 (2.9%)
----------- ----------- ----------------
Hardware 2,088 524 298.6% 1,004 107.9%
Other 424 522 (18.8%) 356 19.1%
----------- ----------- ----------------
Other revenue 2,512 1,046 140.0% 1,360 84.7%
----------- ----------- ----------------
Total revenue 50,654 24,572 106.1% 50,712 (0.1%)
=========== =========== ================
Total Repeatable
as % of total 79.9% 69.7% 81.8%
The Group's reported gross profit margin was 80.6% in H1 2021
which is comparable with H1 2020 at 81.8%. Our gross margin in H1
2019 was 74.9%. This 5.7% gross margin increase primarily results
from a change in sales mix compared with H1 2019. Our lower margin
distribution business is now a smaller portion of our revenue while
higher margin streams such as virtual queuing, ticketing and
eCommerce, maintenance and support and platform fees are
proportionately greater.
Administrative expenses
Reported administrative expenses increased 0.9% to $39.2m in H1
2021 (H1 2020: $38.8m) but remained 6.8% lower than H1 2019,
reflecting the Group's ongoing efforts to control its cost
footprint as well as the significant number of open positions
during the first half of the year. The Group continued to benefit
from the cost reductions implemented during H1 2020 but also
experienced COVID-19 related impacts such as spend on office
related costs, travel, marketing and tradeshows remaining lower
than normal due to our workforce being remote for the majority of
H1 2021 and continued restrictions across the Group's key markets.
Share-based payment costs have increased on H1 2020 to $1.1m,
reflective of key management incentive arrangements being granted
in January and September 2020.
Underlying administrative expenditure increased by 10.7% to
$31.8m on H1 2020 due to the cost reduction plans implemented
following the onset of the pandemic in April 2020 and a return of
staff to full work schedules during the period to capture the
available revenue opportunities presented in H1 2021. Costs have
been further increased due to the employment market conditions
which have led to an increase in salaries in order to recruit and
retain staff; these conditions also resulting in offsetting delays
in hiring.
During the period the Group also took action to rationalise its
property leases and exited properties in San Diego, London, Sydney
and Belfast which on an annual basis will save the Group $0.5m in
property lease payments.
No government assistance has been received during or since the
end of H1 2021.
Six months Six months Six months
ended ended ended
30 June 30 June 30 June
2021 2020 2019
Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited
$000 $000 $000
----------- ----------- -----------
Administrative expenses as reported 39,163 38,804 42,034
Capitalised development expenditure
(1) 669 3,010 10,040
Deferred equity settled acquisition
consideration - (138) (1,076)
Amortisation related to acquired
intangibles (1,253) (1,505) (5,812)
Share-based payments (1,076) (333) (1,080)
Amortisation and depreciation
(2) (6,504) (7,565) (7,120)
Property lease payments not in
administrative expense 785 820 686
Impairment of intangible assets - (1,360) -
Costs related to formal sale process - (446) -
Professional service cost (3) - (2,585) (3,349)
Underlying administrative expenditure 31,784 28,702 34,323
=========== =========== ===========
(1) See consolidated cash flow statement.
(2) This excludes acquired intangibles but includes depreciation
on right of use assets.
(3) Professional service costs incurred in the delivery of
professional services revenue adjusted in H1 2019 to be
comparable with H1 2021 and H1 2020.
Cash EBITDA
The Group delivered record Cash EBITDA for the period of $9.8m,
an $8.8m increase from $1.0m recorded in H1 2019. This $8.8m
increase is a combined result of our higher margin sales; improved
productivity and efficiencies from the structural realignments
implemented during 2020; and lower than normal headcount during the
period where revenues recovered quicker than the Group could fill
positions, made more challenging by an extremely competitive job
market in our key regions. Since the end of the half, we have
secured a number of key positions however still have some way to go
to reach optimal headcount levels.
The table below sets out a reconciliation between statutory
operating profit/(loss) and cash EBITDA:
Six months Six months Six months
ended 30 ended 30 ended 30
June 2021 June 2020 June 2019
Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited
$000 $000 $000
----------- ----------- -----------
Operating profit/(loss) 1,655 (18,706) (4,043)
Add: Aborted sale process - 446 -
Add: Deferred equity settled
acquisition consideration - 138 1,076
Add: Amortisation related to
acquired intangibles 1,253 1,505 5,812
Add: Share-based payments 1,076 333 1,080
Add: Impairment of intangible -
assets 1,360 -
Add: Amortisation and depreciation
(excluding acquired intangibles) 6,504 7,565 7,120
Less: Capitalised internal
development costs paid in cash (669) (3,010) (10,040)
Cash EBITDA 9,819 (10,369) 1,005
=========== =========== ===========
The Group recorded an operating profit of $1.7m in H1 2021 (H1
2019 operating loss: $4.0m); and adjusted earnings per share in the
first half of 2021 increased to 6.39 cents (H1 2020: Loss per share
of 37.94 cents; H1 2019: earnings per share of 14.21 cents).
Development expenditure
Six months Six months Six months
ended 30 ended 30 ended 30
June 2021 June 2020 June 2019
Development expenditure by segment Unaudited Unaudited Unaudited
----------- ----------- -----------
Ticketing and distribution 11,108 10,135 12,547
----------- ----------- -----------
% of ticketing and distribution
segment revenue 35.0% 60.3% 35.0%
Guest Experience (1) 3,810 2,374 3,417
----------- ----------- -----------
% of guest experience segment
revenue 20.1% 30.6% 23.0%
Total development expenditure 14,918 12,509 15,964
=========== =========== ===========
% of total revenue 29.5% 50.9% 31.5%
(1) H1 2020 and H1 2019 have been adjusted to remove professional
service costs incurred in the delivery of professional
services revenue to be comparable with H1 2021.
2021 has been a tremendous period of innovation for accesso,
with frontline and technical teams working at great pace to deliver
solutions to enable business continuity for our customers
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Total development expenditure for
H1 2021 increased to $14.9m, 19.3% higher than H1 2020 due to the
impact of 4-day working weeks and a reduction of 30 contractors in
H1 2020. The 6.6% decrease relative to H1 2019, a more typical
period, reflects that the business has not yet scaled back to its
pre-pandemic cost base.
The Group capitalises elements of development expenditure where
it is appropriate and in accordance with IAS 38 Intangible Assets.
Capitalised development expenditure of $0.7m (H1 2020: $3.0m),
representing 4.5% (H1 2020: 24.1%) of total development
expenditure. This material decrease in the proportion of
development expenditure being capitalised is not a reflection of
lesser importance of the work being undertaken. Development
continues to expand the product set and add features that will be
important for our customers' operations in the future.
Cash and net cash
Net cash at the end of the period has increased to $33.2m from
31 December 2020.
30 June 31 December
2021 2020
$000 $000
-------- ------------
Borrowings - (26,699)
Less: Cash in hand & at bank 33,157 56,355
Net cash 33,157 29,656
-------- ------------
This strong net cash position has benefited from cash generated
from operating activities of $6.3m (H1 2020 Net outflow of $11.9m;
H1 2019 outflow of $2.7m) delivered by a period of strong revenue
performance in high margin accesso Passport and accesso LoQueue
business, diligent working capital management and lower
headcount.
The Group continues to be cost conscious and as such maintained
a low level of capital expenditure into property, plant and
equipment of $0.2m (H1 2020: $0.3m, H1 2019: $1.4m).
The Group's 31 December 2020 year end drawn borrowing facility
of $26.7m was settled on 19 March 2021 following a successful
refinancing of its lending facilities with Investec Bank plc at a
total cost of $0.7m in fees paid during H1 2021. The Group has a
3-year, GBP18m Coronavirus Large Interruption Scheme Loan revolving
credit facility at a 3.75% margin with a commitment fee of 1.5%
expiring in March 2024. Quarterly covenant tests are in place on
minimum revenue and minimum liquidity for 2 years to December 2022.
From March 2023 additional covenants are added for leverage and
interest cover. No drawings have been made on this facility.
Impairment
In line with relevant accounting standards, the Group reviews
the carrying value of all intangible assets on an annual basis or
at the interim where indicators of impairment exist. No indicators
of impairment were identified in respect of the intangible assets
of the Group as at 30 June 2021 following a period of strong
performance and expected future performance.
Taxation
The tax rate used by the Board on the half year to 30 June 2021
represents the actual effective tax rate for the period, this is a
result of the unprecedented challenges presented by COVID-19 in
reliably estimating annual effective rates. The actual effective
tax rate on the statutory profit before tax for the half year is
8.4% (Year ended 31 December 2020: 9.2%). The year ended 31
December 2020 rate was reduced to 9.2% from the statutory tax rates
due to $8.3m of unrecognised deferred tax asset on US losses, net
of $0.4m of prior year items and $2.6m US carry forward credits,
excluding these items the adjusted effective tax would have been
25%, reflective of the US tax rates where the majority of the
Group's earnings are derived.
The actual effective rate for the period ended 30 June 2021 is
reduced from statutory rates due to the combined impact of $0.2m of
prior year over provisions and rate changes. At 30 June 21 the
Group continues to apply a $10.7m restriction in recognition of the
Group's deferred tax asset on available losses in the US, due to
the uncertainty of short-term profitability, the Group will revisit
this restriction as at 31 December 2021 in light of current and
projected performance.
-S -
Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
for the six-month period ended 30 June 2021
30 June 30 June 31 December
2021 Unaudited 2020 Unaudited 2020
Audited
Notes $000 $000 $000
------------------------------------- ------ ---------------- ---------------- -------------
Revenue 50,654 24,572 56,094
Cost of sales (9,836) (4,474) (13,109)
---------------- ---------------- -------------
Gross profit 40,818 20,098 42,985
Administrative expenses (39,163) (38,804) (73,339)
---------------- ---------------- -------------
Operating profit / (loss) before
impairment of intangible assets 1,655 (17,346) (27,727)
Impairment of intangible assets - (1,360) (2,627)
------------------------------------- ------ ---------------- ---------------- -------------
Operating profit / (loss) 1,655 (18,706) (30,354)
Finance expense (809) (438) (2,518)
Finance income 12 666 10
---------------- ---------------- -------------
Profit / (Loss) before tax 858 (18,478) (32,862)
---------------- ---------------- -------------
Income tax (charge) / benefit 4 (72) 2,980 3,008
Profit / (Loss) for the period 786 (15,498) (29,854)
================ ================ =============
Other comprehensive income
/ (loss)
Items that will be reclassified
to income statement
Exchange differences on translating
foreign operations 1,151 (1,034) 4,910
Income tax credit on items
recorded in other comprehensive
income 193 - 1,129
---------------- ---------------- -------------
1,344 (1,034) 6,039
---------------- ----------------
Total comprehensive income
/ (loss) 2,130 (16,532) (23,815)
================ ================ =============
All loss and comprehensive
loss is attributable to the
owners of the parent
Earnings per share expressed
in cents per share:
Basic 6 1.91 (53.17) (84.78)
Diluted 6 1.85 (53.17) (84.78)
All activities of the company are classified as continuing.
Consolidated statement of financial position as at 30 June
2021
31 December
30 June 2021 30 June 2020 2020
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
$000 $000 $000
----------------------------------- ------------- ------------- ------------
Assets
Non-current assets
Intangible assets 124,560 135,073 129,503
Property, plant and equipment 1,958 3,160 2,439
Right of use assets 3,611 4,666 4,166
Contract assets 266 1,843 1,109
Deferred tax 7,674 10,794 7,701
------------- ------------
138,069 155,536 144,918
------------- ------------- ------------
Current assets
Inventories 533 1,052 1,927
Contract assets 7,182 4,661 3,404
Trade and other receivables 19,889 8,616 15,968
Derivative financial asset - 645 -
Income tax receivable 2,299 105 1,858
Cash and cash equivalents 33,157 55,786 56,355
------------- ------------
63,060 70,865 79,512
------------- ------------- ------------
Liabilities
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables 23,429 12,813 17,328
Derivative financial liabilities - - 758
Lease liabilities 937 1,270 1,163
Contract liabilities 4,321 6,875 7,525
Corporation tax payable 94 1,318 667
------------- ------------
28,781 22,276 27,441
------------- ------------- ------------
Net current assets 34,279 48,589 52,071
------------- ------------- ------------
Non-current liabilities
Deferred tax 6,871 9,880 7,580
Contract liabilities 1,084 1,672 1,303
Other non-current liabilities - 254 -
Lease liabilities 3,373 4,203 3,790
Borrowings - 24,937 26,699
------------- ------------
11,328 40,946 39,372
------------- ------------- ------------
Total liabilities 40,109 63,222 66,813
------------- ------------- ------------
Net assets 161,020 163,179 157,617
============= ============= ============
Shareholders' equity
Called up share capital 595 595 595
Share premium 153,337 153,327 153,327
Own shares held in trust - (665) -
Retained earnings (13,622) (3,767) (15,864)
Merger reserve 19,641 19,641 19,641
Translation reserve 1,069 (5,952) (82)
------------- ------------- ------------
Total shareholders' equity 161,020 163,179 157,617
============= ============= ============
Consolidated statement of cash flows
for the six-month period ended 30 June 2021
30 June 31 December
2021 30 June 2020 Audited
Unaudited 2020 Unaudited
$000 $000 $000
Cash flows from operations
Profit/(loss) for the period 786 (15,498) (29,854)
Adjustments for:
Depreciation (excluding finance leased
assets) 1,067 781 1,758
Depreciation on finance leased assets 558 982 1,461
Amortisation on acquired intangibles 1,253 1,505 2,573
Amortisation on development costs
and other intangibles 4,879 5,802 11,446
Impairment of intangibles - 1,360 2,627
Loss on disposal of fixed assets - 6 22
Share-based payments 1,076 333 1,398
Deferred consideration charge (note
10) - 138 150
Finance expense 809 438 2,518
Finance income (12) (666) (10)
Foreign exchange loss/(gain) 317 131 1,308
Income tax credit 72 (2,980) (3,008)
RDEC tax credits - - (384)
------------ ---------------- --------------
Operating cashflow before movement
in working capital 10,805 (7,668) (7,995)
Decrease/(increase) in inventories 918 (109) (923)
(Increase)/decrease in trade and
other receivables (4,257) 14,836 6,658
Increase/(decrease) in trade and
other payables 6,481 (18,470) (14,444)
(Increase)/decrease in contract assets/contract
labilities (6,315) 2,244 4,847
---------------- --------------
Cash generated from/(used in) operations 7,632 (9,167) (11,857)
Tax paid (1,375) (2,728) (2,657)
---------------- --------------
Net cash inflow /(outflow) from operating
activities 6,257 (11,895) (14,514)
------------ ---------------- --------------
Cash flows from investing activities
Deferred consideration settlement (13) (269) (477)
Capitalised internal development
costs (669) (3,010) (2,969)
Purchase of property, plant and equipment (227) (285) (437)
Interest received 11 5 6
------------ ---------------- --------------
Net cash used in investing activities (898) (3,559) (3,877)
------------ ---------------- --------------
Cash flows from financing activities
Share issue 11 48,215 48,215
Share issue costs - (2,123) (2,123)
Sale of shares held in trust - - 198
Interest paid (332) (170) (633)
Payments to finance lease creditors (785) (820) (1,622)
Net payments made to settle Forward -
FX contracts (409) -
Capitalised arrangement fees (685) - -
Proceeds from borrowings - 10,115 10,116
Repayment of borrowings (27,033) - -
Net cash generated from financing
activities (29,233) 55,217 54,151
------------ ---------------- --------------
(Decrease)/increase in cash and cash
equivalents in the period (23,874) 39,763 35,760
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning
of year 56,355 16,205 16,205
Exchange gain/(loss) on cash and
cash equivalents 676 (182) 4,390
------------ ---------------- --------------
Cash and cash equivalents at end
of period 33,157 55,786 56,355
============ ================ ==============
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
for the six-month period ended 30 June 2021
Share Share Retained Merger Own Translation Total
capital premium earnings reserve shares reserve
held
in trust
$000 $000 $000 $000 $000 $000 $000
------------------------- ---------- ---------- ---------- --------- ----------- ------------ -----------
Balance at
31 December
2020 595 153,327 (15,864) 19,641 - (82) 157,617
Comprehensive
loss for the
period
Profit for
period - - 786 - - - 786
Other comprehensive
income - - - - - 1,151 1,151
Income tax
credit on
items recorded
in other comprehensive
income - - 193 - - - 193
Total comprehensive
income for
the period - - 979 - - 1,151 2,130
Contributions
by and distributions
by owners
Issue of share
capital - 10 - - - - 10
Share-based
payments - - 1,076 - - - 1,076
Share option
tax charge
- deferred - - 187 - - - 187
Total contributions
by and distributions
by owners - 10 1,263 - - - 1,273
---------- ---------- ---------- --------- ----------- ------------ -----------
Balance at
30 June 2021 595 153,337 (13,622) 19,641 - 1,069 161,020
========== ========== ========== ========= =========== ============ ===========
Balance at
31 December
2019 427 107,403 11,331 19,641 (665) (4,918) 133,219
Comprehensive
Income for
the year
Loss for period - - (15,498) - - - (15,498)
Other comprehensive
income - - - - - (1,034) (1,034)
---------- ---------- ---------- --------- ----------- ------------ -----------
Total comprehensive
loss for the
year - - (15,498) - - (1,034) (16,532)
---------- ---------- ---------- --------- ----------- ------------ -----------
Contributions
by and distributions
by owners
Issue of share
capital 168 48,047 - - - - 48,215
Transaction
fees - (2,123) - - - - (2,123)
Share-based
payments - - 333 - - - 333
Equity-settled
deferred consideration - - 138 - - - 138
Share option
tax charge
- deferred - - (71) - - - (71)
Total contributions
by and distributions
by owners 168 45,924 400 - - - 46,492
---------- ---------- ---------- --------- ----------- ------------ -----------
Balance at
30 June 2020 595 153,327 (3,767) 19,641 (665) (5,952) 163,179
========== ========== ========== ========= =========== ============ ===========
Notes to the Interim Financial Information
1. Basis of preparation
accesso Technology Group plc (the "Group") is a company
domiciled in England. The basis of preparation of this financial
information is consistent with the basis that will be adopted for
the full year accounts. The interim financial information has been
prepared in accordance with the recognition and measurement
requirements of international accounting standards in conformity
with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 that are used for
the annual financial statements.
While the financial figures included in this half-yearly report
have been computed in accordance with IFRS applicable to interim
periods, this half-yearly report does not contain sufficient
information to constitute an interim financial report as that term
is defined in IAS 34.
There are no changes to significant accounting policies.
This interim financial information has neither been audited nor
reviewed pursuant to guidance issued by the FRC and the financial
information contained in this report does not constitute statutory
accounts within the meaning of Section 434 of the Companies Act
2006. The comparative figures for the financial year ended 31
December 2020 are not the Company's statutory accounts for that
financial year. Those accounts have been reported on by the
Company's auditor and delivered to the registrar of companies. The
report of the auditor was (i) unqualified, (ii) did not include a
reference to any matters to which the auditor drew attention by way
of emphasis without qualifying their report, and (iii) did not
contain a statement under section 498 (2) or (3) of the Companies
Act 2006.
1.1 Going concern
The directors, having reassessed the principal risks and
uncertainties, consider it appropriate to adopt the going concern
basis of accounting in the preparation of the Interim Financial
Information.
In reaching this conclusion, the directors noted the Group's
unutilised GBP18.0m/$24.8m revolving credit facility and net cash
position of $45.8m as at 31 August 2021, providing total available
liquidity to the Group of $70.6m as at 31 August 2021. The
directors have three forecast scenarios, being a conservative base
case, a severe but plausible downside case and a plausible upside
case through to 31 December 2022. Actual results to date have been
consistently trading ahead of all scenarios. In all scenarios
modelled the Group maintains sufficient funding headroom and is in
compliance with its debt covenants throughout the period of
assessment.
Consequently, the directors are satisfied that the Group's
forecasts take into account reasonably possible changes in trading
performance, including no anticipated breach of covenants and the
ability to satisfy its liabilities as they fall due for a period of
at least 15 months. Therefore there are no material uncertainties
over going concern and the going concern basis of preparation
continues to be appropriate.
2. Accounting policies
The condensed consolidated interim financial information has
been prepared using accounting policies consistent with those set
out on pages 64 to 108 in the audited financial statements for the
year ended 31 December 2020. These accounting policies have been
applied consistently to all periods presented in this financial
information.
The policy for recognising and measuring income taxes in the
interim period is described in Note 4.
3. Business segments and revenue analysis
Segmental analysis
The Group's operating segments under IFRS have been determined
with reference to the financial information presented to the Board
of directors. The Board of the Group is considered the Chief
Operating Decision Maker ("CODM") as defined within IFRS 8, as it
sets the strategic goals for the Group and monitors its operational
performance against this strategy.
The Group's Ticketing and Distribution operating segment
comprises the following products:
-- accesso Passport ticketing suite using our hosted proprietary
technology offering to maximise up selling, cross selling
and selling greater volumes.
-- accesso Siriusware software solutions providing modules
in ticketing & admissions, memberships, reservations, resource
scheduling, retail, food service, gift cards, kiosks and
eCommerce.
-- The accesso ShoWare ticketing solution for box office, online,
kiosk, mobile, call centre and social media sales.
-- Ingresso operate a consolidated distribution platform which
connects venues and distributors, opening up a larger global
channel for clients to sell their event, theatre and attraction
tickets.
The Group's virtual queuing solution (accesso LoQueue) and
experience management platform (The Experience Engine 'TE2') are
headed by segment managers who discuss the operating activities,
financial results, forecasts and plans of their respective segments
with the CODM. These two distinct operating segments share similar
economic characteristics, customers and markets; the products are
heavily bespoke, technology and software intensive in their
delivery and are directly targeted at improving a guest's
experience of an attraction or entertainment venue, whilst
providing cross-selling opportunities and increased revenues to the
venues. Management therefore conclude that they meet the
aggregation criteria.
The Group's Guest Experience operating segment comprises the
following aggregated segments:
-- accesso LoQueue providing leading edge virtual queuing
solutions to take customers out of line, improve guest experience
and increase revenue for theme parks
-- The Experience Engine ("TE2") experience management platform
which delivers personalised real time immersive customer
experiences at the right time elevating the guest's experience
and loyalty to the brand
The Group's assets and liabilities are reviewed on a group basis
and therefore segmental information is not provided for the
statements of financial position of the segments.
The CODM monitors the results of the operating segments prior to
charges for interest, depreciation, tax, amortisation and
non-recurring items but after the deduction of capitalised
development costs. The Group has a significant amount of central
unallocated costs which are not segment specific. These costs have
therefore been excluded from segment profitability and presented as
a separate line below segment profit.
The following is an analysis of the Group's revenue and results
from the continuing operations by reportable segment which
represents revenue generated from external customers. During 2020
the Group structurally realigned their key functions of Operations,
Engineering, Product, Human Resources, Finance, Administration,
Commercial Sales and Marketing to have single teams spanning across
the group and supporting the operating segments which has driven
productivity and efficiency, from 1 January 2021 the Group no
longer attribute their related costs to the segments for management
reporting purposes. Consequently, our 30 June 2020 segment note has
been restated to reflect a consistent presentation with 30 June
2021.
Six months Six months Year ended
ended 30 June ended 30 31 December
2021 June 2020 2020
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
$000 $000 $000
Ticketing 31,716 16,806 37,966
Guest Experience 18,938 7,766 18,128
Total revenue 50,654 24,572 56,094
================ ============ =============
Ticketing Guest Central Capitalised
Experience unallocated development Group
costs costs
Period ended 30 June 2021
- Unaudited $000 $000 $000 $000
---------- ------------ ------------- ------------- --------
Cash EBITDA (1) 28,042 12,989 (30,543) (669) 9,819
---------- ------------ ------------- ------------- --------
Capitalised development
costs 669
Depreciation and amortisation
(excluding acquired intangibles) (6,504)
Amortisation related to
acquired intangibles (1,253)
Share-based payments (1,076)
Finance income 12
Finance expense (809)
Profit before tax 858
========
Ticketing Guest Central Capitalised
Experience unallocated development Group
costs costs
Period ended 30 June 2020
- Unaudited $000 $000 $000 $000
---------- ------------ ------------- ------------- ---------
Cash EBITDA (1) (2) 14,179 3,521 (25,059) (3,010) (10,369)
---------- ------------ ------------- ------------- ---------
Capitalised development
costs (2) 3,010
Depreciation and amortisation
(excluding acquired intangibles) (7,565)
Aborted sale process costs (446)
Deferred consideration
related to employment expense (138)
Amortisation related to
acquired intangibles (1,505)
Impairment of intangible
assets (1,360)
Share-based payments (333)
Finance income 666
Finance expense (438)
Loss before tax (18,478)
=========
(1) Cash EBITDA: operating profit before the deduction of
amortisation, depreciation, acquisition costs, deferred
and contingent payments, and costs related to share-based
payments less capitalised development costs paid in cash
as per the consolidated cash flow statement.
(2) During 2020 the Group structurally realigned their key
functions of Operations, Engineering, Product, Human
Resources, Finance, Administration, Commercial Sales
and Marketing to have single teams spanning across the
group and supporting the operating segments, from 1 January
2021 the Group no longer attribute their related costs
to the segments for management reporting purposes. Consequently,
our 30 June 2020 segment note has been restated to reflect
a consistent presentation with 30 June 2021.
4. Taxation
The tax expense for both the periods ended 30 June 2021 and 30
June 2020 have been based on the actual effective tax rate due to
the unprecedented challenges caused by COVID-19 in the ability to
estimate the full year effective tax rate reliably. The adjusted
earnings per share (note 6) has been presented using an estimated
adjusted rate for the period, which has been adjusted to remove the
effect of amortisation related to acquired intangibles, share-based
payment charges, deferred and contingent consideration linked to
employment in relation to the acquisitions of TE2 and the aborted
sale expenses and any related tax effect on those items. For tax
purposes, both aborted sale expenses and deferred and contingent
consideration are not deductible for tax purposes, all other
adjusted items to arrive at adjusted (loss)/profit before tax have
a related tax credit or expense.
5. Reconciliation of alternative performance measure
Management present Cash EBITDA as its alternative performance
measure below because it monitors performance at a consolidated
level and provides a better understanding of the Group's underlying
financial performance. The definition of Cash EBITDA is the same as
in the last annual financial statements.
Cash EBITDA is not a defined performance measure under IFRS. The
Group's definition may not be comparable with similarly titled
performance measures and disclosures by other entities.
Six months Six months
ended ended Year ended
30 June 30 June 31 December
2021 2020 2020
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
Cash EBITDA $000 $000 $000
----------- ----------- -------------
Operating profit/(loss) 1,655 (18,706) (30,354)
Add: Aborted sale expenses/acquisition
expenses - 446 461
Add: Deferred acquisition consideration
(1) - 138 150
Add: Amortisation related to acquired
intangibles 1,253 1,505 2,573
Add: Impairment of intangibles - 1,360 2,627
Add: Share-based payments 1,076 333 1,398
Add: Amortisation and depreciation (excluding
acquired intangibles) 6,504 7,565 14,664
Capitalised internal development costs (669) (3,010) (2,969)
----------- ----------- -------------
Cash EBITDA 9,819 (10,369) (11,450)
=========== =========== =============
(1) Under IFRS 3, consideration paid to employees of the acquired
entity, who must remain employees post-acquisition to
receive earn out or deferred consideration, is treated
as compensation expense rather than consideration.
6. Earnings per share ("EPS")
The calculation of the basic earnings per share is based on the
earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders divided by the
weighted average number of shares in issue during the period.
Diluted earnings per share is calculated by dividing the profit
attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average of
ordinary shares outstanding during the period adjusted for the
effects of dilutive instruments.
Adjusted basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing the
profit attributable to ordinary shareholders adjusted for costs
related to acquisition expenses or aborted sales processes, the
amortisation and impairment on acquired intangibles, share-based
compensation, deferred and contingent payments arising from
acquisitions by the weighted average number of shares used in basic
EPS. The denominator for adjusted diluted earnings per share is the
weighted average number of shares used in diluted EPS.
Six months Six months Year
ended ended ended
30 June 30 June 31 December
2021 2020 2020
Unaudited Unaudited Audited
$000 $000 $000
---------------------------------------------- ---------- ---------- ------------
Profit/(loss) attributable to ordinary
shareholders 786 (15,498) (29,854)
Basic EPS
Denominator
Weighted average number of shares used
in basic EPS 41,222 29,150 35,213
---------- ---------- ------------
Basic earnings/(loss) per share - cents 1.91 (53.17) (84,78)
========== ========== ============
Diluted EPS
Denominator
Weighted average number of shares used
in basic EPS 41,222 29,150 35,213
Deferred share consideration on business
combinations 17 -
Effect of dilutive securities
Options 1,369 869 983
---------- ------------
Weighted average number of shares used
in diluted EPS 42,591 30,036 36,196
Diluted earnings/(loss) per share - cents 1.85 (53.17) (84.78)
========== ========== ============
The Group made a loss in the prior periods presented and therefore
the options and equity settled deferred consideration are anti-dilutive.
As a result, basic and diluted earnings per share are presented
on the same basis for those prior periods presented.
Adjusted EPS
Profit/(loss) attributable to ordinary
shareholders 786 (15,498) (29,854)
Adjustments to loss for the period:
Aborted sale expenses - 446 462
Amortisation relating to acquired intangibles 1,253 1,505 2,573
Impairment of intangible assets - 1,360 2,627
Deferred and contingent consideration
linked to employment - 138 150
Shared based payments 1,076 333 1,398
Adjusted profit /(loss) before tax 3,115 (11,716) (22,644)
Net tax related to above adjustments:
(H1 2021: 20.7%, H1 2020: 20.5%; H1 FY
2020: 17.9%) (483) 656 1,291
---------- ---------- ------------
Adjusted profit /(loss) attributable
to ordinary shareholders 2,632 (11,060) (21,353)
Adjusted basic EPS
Denominator
Weighted average number of shares used
in basic EPS 41,222 29,150 35,213
Adjusted earnings/(loss) per share -
cents 6.39 (37.94) (60.64)
========== ========== ============
Adjusted diluted EPS
Denominator
Weighted average number of shares used
in diluted EPS 42,591 30,036 36,196
Adjusted earnings per share - cents 6.18 (37.94) (60.64)
====== ======= =======
The Group has made an adjusted loss in the prior periods
presented and therefore the options and equity settled deferred
consideration are anti-dilutive. As a result, adjusted basic and
adjusted diluted earnings per share are the same for those
periods.
7. Dividend
No dividend has been proposed or recommended during the period.
The Board maintains the view that the payment of a dividend is
unlikely in the medium term with cash better invested on
growth-focused investment opportunities.
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END
IR SFUEFDEFSEFU
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 14, 2021 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)
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