25 July 2024
Kooth plc
("Kooth"
or the "Company" or the "Group")
Half Year Trading Update
Kooth (AIM: KOO), a global
leader in youth digital mental well-being, announces an unaudited
trading update for the half year ended 30 June 2024.
In the US, which now accounts for approximately 70%
of the Group's revenue, Kooth's service went live in California in
January 2024, delivering its new app Soluna to ensure the best
possible behavioral health care to the State's 13-25 year olds.
Soluna was specifically highlighted by the Governor of California,
Gavin Newsom, during his 'State of the State' address in June 2024,
citing its benefit in engaging more kids, earlier, in prevention
and screening.
Following six months of service in the State, Kooth
has seen:
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Sign-ups in every one of California's 58
counties
·
53% of service users coming from communities most
disproportionality impacted by health and economic
inequalities
·
Higher engagement with self-guided therapy
compared to existing geographies where Kooth operates
·
Positive feedback from youth engaging in coaching:
95% of service users would recommend Soluna to a friend
These points highlight the opportunity for Kooth's
services to deliver health equality where it is commissioned. In
addition to the Company's work in California, Kooth is nearing the
launch of its partnership with Aetna Better Health to pilot its
services in Illinois to support youth in low-income families that
qualify for Medicaid. The company is continuing to deliver services
in Pennsylvania and is engaging in contract extension negotiations.
The Company has a strong pipeline of new business in the US and
anticipates new contracts being signed in late 2024.
In the UK, Kooth remains NHS England's largest single
access provider for mental health support for under 18s. This is
despite challenging macro-economic conditions in the UK and the NHS
more specifically which have been noted before, and the additional
disruption caused by the UK General Election on 4 July 2024.
Following the election of a Labour Government, which made plain its
focus on mental health in both its manifesto and the recent King's
Speech, Kooth believes that renewed focus will be placed on this
important area. The Company continues to prepare for the launch of
Soluna in the UK which it anticipates for Q2 2025.
Kooth's balance sheet has strengthened during
the period, with net cash as at 30 June 2024 of £14.9 million
(FY23: £11.0 million) and an undrawn $9.5m working capital credit
facility, ensuring the Company is well-placed to continue investing
in its platform and pipeline to deliver long-term
growth.
Trading for the year to date is in line with
expectations, though Kooth notes that current exchange rates may
impact revenue in the second half. This is not anticipated to
influence margin or profitability.
The Group's half year results in respect of the
six months to 30 June 2024 will be announced in September
2024.
Tim Barker, Chief
Executive Officer of Kooth, said:
"We have made significant strategic progress in the
first half of 2024 and I would like to thank everyone at Kooth who
ensured that we were able to make the January launch of Soluna in
California, a key milestone in our ongoing development, along with
the diversification of our US offering with the announcement of our
partnership with Aetna. We have strengthened our cash balance
during the period and this will help ensure that we are able to
deliver services to our existing partners and also support us as we
look to engage with our growing pipeline."
This announcement
contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of
Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 as it forms part of UK domestic law by
virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. The person
responsible for this announcement is Sanjay Jawa, CFO.
ENDS
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Enquiries:
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Kooth plc
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investorrelations@kooth.com
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Tim Barker, CEO
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Sanjay Jawa, CFO
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Stifel, Nominated
Adviser & Sole Broker
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+44 (0) 20 7710 7600
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Ben Maddison, Nick Harland, Erik Anderson, Ben
Good
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FTI Consulting,
Financial PR
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Kooth@fticonsulting.com
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Ben Atwell, Alex Shaw
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About Kooth
plc:
Kooth (AIM:KOO) is a global leader in youth digital mental
well-being. Our mission is to provide accessible and safe spaces
for everyone to achieve better mental health. Our platform is
clinically robust and accredited to provide a range of therapeutic
support and interventions. All our services are predicated on easy
access to make early intervention and prevention a
reality.
Kooth is a
fully safeguarded and pre-moderated community with a library of
peer and professional created content, alongside access to
experienced online counsellors. There are no thresholds for support
and no waiting lists.
Kooth is the
longest standing digital mental health provider to hold a UK-wide
accreditation from the British Association of Counselling and
Psychotherapy (BACP) and according to NHS England data for 2022/23
is now the largest single access provider for mental health support
for under 18s.
In 2021, Kooth began executing on its
international expansion strategy, with an initial focus on the US
market. This focus is due to the growing recognition of the
importance of improving youth mental health in this key global
healthcare market, with 1-in-6 people aged 6-17 experiencing a
mental health disorder each year.
For more information, please
visit www.koothplc.com.