18th Mar 2024 14:14
(Alliance News) - Nightcap PLC on Monday hailed growth in adjusted earnings despite statutory loss widening sharply.
The London-based owner of the Cocktail Club, Adventure Bar and Barrio Familia chains said pretax loss widened to GBP1.8 million in the six months to December 31 from GBP930,000 a year prior.
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation however climbed 20% to GBP4.9 million from GBP4.1 million.
Nightcap shares rose 7.6% to 4.52 pence each on Monday afternoon in London.
Revenue jumped 42% to GBP33.4 million from GBP23.5 million.
Cost of sales however increased 49% to GBP7.0 million from GBP4.7 million, while administrative expenses were 39% higher at GBP26.5 million compared to GBP19.1 million.
Further, depreciation costs increased 45% to GBP3.7 million from GBP2.5 million, while net finance expenses ballooned to GBP1.8 million from GBP835,000.
Meanwhile, Nightcap's net debt at December 31 was a third higher at GBP5.6 million compared to GBP4.2 million nearly a year prior.
Looking ahead, the company reiterated that trading since the start of 2024 has been challenging, reflecting challenges faced by the hospitality sector. Nightcap expects the challenges to continue into the end of the current financial year. Its last financial year ended on July 2, 2023.
Chief Executive Sarah Willingham said: "We expect the second half of FY2024 to continue to be uncertain and challenging, but I believe hospitality has gone through the worst of this downturn with many economic indicators showing a likely recovery later on this year. In the meantime, we continue our focus on leading our sector in terms of quality, innovation and training. Our ambition to become a leading company from a digital perspective is gathering pace, with several new systems and integrations launching this quarter."
By Tom Budszus, Alliance News slot editor
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