YouGov plc (LSE: YOU) the international research and data analytics group, today announces its results for the six months to 31 January 2020. This follows the trading update issued on 24 March 2020 in lieu of the results in accordance with guidance published by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Financial Reporting Council.
Summary of Results | ||||
Unaudited six months to 31 January 2020 £m | Unaudited six months to 31 January 2019 (restated)2 £m | Change % | Audited full year to 31 July 2019 (restated)2 £m | |
Revenue | 76.9 | 66.5 | 16% | 136.5 |
Adjusted EBITDA | 18.6 | 14.7 | 27% | 31.7 |
Adjusted Operating Profit1 | 11.4 | 8.4 | 35% | 18.5 |
Adjusted Operating Profit Margin (%)1 | 15% | 13% | 2p.p. | 14% |
Adjusted Profit before Tax1 | 12.1 | 9.5 | 27% | 20.4 |
Adjusted Earnings per Share1 | 8.7p | 6.4p | 35% | 14.8p |
Statutory Operating Profit | 9.5 | 8.4 | 13% | 20.0 |
Statutory Profit before Tax | 9.2 | 8.2 | 13% | 19.4 |
Statutory Basic Earnings per Share (p) | 6.2p | 5.4p | 16% | 14.1p |
1 Defined in the explanation of non-IFRS measures on page 13.
2 As of the current financial year the Group is required to apply IFRS 16: Leases and has elected to restate the comparative periods to ensure the results presented provide a clear picture of trading performance.
Financial highlights
· Revenue growth of 16% (HY 2019: 18%), with underlying business3 growth of 15%
· Adjusted operating profit1 up by 35% to £11.4m (HY 2019: £8.4m), with underlying business3 growth of 34%
· Adjusted profit before tax1 up by 27% to £12.1m (HY 2019: £9.5m)
· Adjusted earnings per share1 up by 35% to 8.7p (HY 2019: 6.4p)
· Adjusted operating profit margin1 up 2 percentage points (p.p.) to 15% (HY 2019: 13%)
· Statutory operating profit up 13% to £9.5m (HY 2019: £8.4m)
· Strong cash conversion of 93%
· Cash balances of £27.2m (31 January 2019: £25.0m)
3 Defined as growth in business excluding impact of current and prior period acquisitions and movement in exchange rates.
Operational highlights
· Data Products & Services revenue up by 17% to £43.4m (17% from underlying business3); now representing 55% of total revenue (HY 2019: 54%):
o Data Products revenue increased by 29% (27% from underlying business3) to £25.1m
o Data Services revenue increased by 3% (7% from underlying business3) to £18.3m, offset by restructuring in the Nordics, non-recurring election work in Asia Pacific and soft performance in Germany
· Custom Research revenue increased by 12% to £33.9m (11% from underlying business3):
o Continued strategic focus on higher margin work resulted in a 19% increase in operating profit to £8.0m
· US remains the largest driver with adjusted operating profit increasing by 20% to £9.3m
· Further investment in building and developing our panels in Australia, India, Italy, Mexico, Poland, Spain and Taiwan
Current trading and outlook
· Trading during the second half of our financial year (1 February to 31 July 2020) has started positively and is in line with Board expectations for the full year
· To date, we have not yet seen any material impact to our business from the COVID-19 pandemic
· Notwithstanding the current macro-economic situation, our pipeline of sales opportunities for our syndicated Data Products remains strong with more opportunities for growth in Custom Research
· Continued investment in strategic initiatives, e.g. roll-out of YouGov Direct across further geographies
· We are seeing a small minority of existing clients requesting payment deferrals or cancellations which we are handling on a case-by-case basis
· Given the unprecedented nature of this pandemic it is difficult to estimate its impact on our clients and their financial stability going forward. Therefore, we consider it prudent to anticipate that this situation could cause clients to delay projects, default or request longer payment terms, as well as a slowdown in some business wins.
· We continue to closely monitor this fluid situation and its potential impact on our pipeline over the coming months and into our next financial year which commences on 1 August 2020
Responding to COVID-19 and supporting our stakeholders
· With strong cash balances and no debt, we are confident of YouGov’s resilience to endure the period of uncertainty. We have taken and will continue to take all the necessary actions to protect our business and people
· The health and safety of our people is of paramount importance. At the time of writing all 38 YouGov offices are closed with our entire workforce working from home
· No current intention to furlough any employees or apply for any Government loans or grants
· Being an online company, we have an established culture of remote and flexible working. Consequently, our clients continue to receive business as usual service, and we are well-positioned to maintain this continuity of service during this period
· Prudent cost reviews and contingency planning undertaken
· We continue to closely monitor the rapidly evolving situation in order to respond accordingly
· We understand the importance of accurate and easily accessible data and insights during these unprecedented times. To support the healthcare research community and public health bodies across the world, we have partnered with the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London to gather global insights on people’s behaviours and opinions in response to COVID-19, with the data being freely available for public health researchers
· We have also developed the YouGov COVID-19 Monitor for our commercial clients to help provide key consumer and social insights, including market and sector impact and health compliance, across 29 markets
Post-period highlights
· Strategic multi-year contract signed with a large international financial services company based in Germany
· Launched YouGov Recommend+, an NPS and brand tracking service making full use of YouGov’s data assets
· Panel expansion underway to include Austria, Brazil, Switzerland and Turkey
· Aforementioned partnership with Imperial College London and launch of the YouGov COVID-19 Monitor
Stephan Shakespeare, Chief Executive, said:
“YouGov turns 20 this year and I am confident of the Company’s resilience during this period of macro-economic and social uncertainty. We meet the new challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic from a position of strength, with a robust business model, strong balance sheet and skilled employees who continue to provide our clients with valuable opinions and consumer insights across their markets. YouGov data is an important tool for our clients at this time, helping them to understand and respond to rapidly changing consumer and social sentiment.
Trading during the second half of our financial year has started positively and is in line with Board expectations for the full year. We are yet to see any material impact to our business from the global outbreak of COVID-19 and we continue to monitor the situation closely.”
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