25th May 2023 10:58
(Alliance News) - RA International Group PLC shares dropped on Thursday after the company reported a collapse in its yearly underlying profit.
Shares in RA International fell 23% to 12.10 pence in London on Thursday morning.
The London-based remote site services provider in Africa and the Middle East said its pretax loss in 2022 narrowed to USD13.2 million from USD32.2 million. Revenue rose 15% to USD62.9 million from USD56.4 million the prior year.
However, the company's underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation collapsed by 91% to USD600,000 to USD6.7 million. The underlying Ebitda margin dropped markedly to 1.0% from 12.3% in the last year.
The company said this was a reflection of "inflationary pressure impacting the business since the second half of 2021". It said the margin pressure will abate over time, however, "with newly awarded contracts generating improved margins".
Chief Executive Officer Soraya Narfeldt said: "We remain cautious on the financial performance of the business for the current financial year and expect the business to remain broadly breakeven at the underlying Ebitda level."
The company did not declare a dividend for 2022, but said it would reinstate it as soon as was practicable. It also did not pay a dividend for 2021.
"We continue to focus on internal initiatives including cost control, efficiency and cash discipline to restore profitability alongside growing the business in-line with our strategic priorities," said CEO Narfeldt.
By Will Neill, Alliance News reporter
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