Shares in Kainos jump as it expects to come in ahead of forecasts

Shares in Northern Irish software company Kainos surged on Friday after it said it expected full-year financial results to be ahead of current market forecasts.

The company said it had experienced a strong trading performance for the last nine months and is well-positioned for further growth.

“Looking ahead, our robust pipeline, strong balance sheet and significant contracted backlog underpins our confidence in our outlook,” Kainos said.

Shares in the FTSE 250-listed company were up 18 per cent in early trading in London on Friday.

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The company, which provides digital technology services and platforms to customers that include the National Health Service (NHS), was established in 1986 as a spin-out company from Queen's University Belfast. It employs more than 1,700 people.

Services

Kainos operates across two specialist business areas – digital services, where revenues rose 16 per cent in the first half to £71.4 million (€80.56 million), and Workday, which saw a 41 per cent jump in turnover to £35.8 million.

Overall, revenues were up 23 per cent in the company’s first half with pretax profits doubling to £25 million versus the same period a year earlier.

"Within our digital services division, we continue to work on several substantial, long-term engagements as part of the UK government's digital transformation programme, including supporting the NHS as it responds to Covid-19," Kainos said.

“The scale, quality and global reach of our Workday practice means that we continue to win new consulting contracts across all our operating regions,” it added.

The company is due to announce full-year results on May 24th.