London-listed tech firm Gresham Technologies has reported strong full year results as it gears up for a vote on a recent take-private offer.
The software and services company said pre-tax profit grew by £1.6m to £3.1m in 2023 after its high-margin Clareti business turned a profit for the first time the previous year.
Earlier this year, the firm won a contract worth $1.5m (£1.2m) for its Clareti Control platform, designed to help financial institutions control their data.
Total revenue notched up two per cent to £49m last year and Gresham has a cash pile of £4.8m, with no debt.
Gresham added 12 new clients in 2023, bringing its total direct customers to 270 across 30 countries.
Chief executive Ian Manocha said: “In a challenging market, most especially in the first half of 2023, our talented team delivered strategic new wins, improved on customer ARR net retention, and further lifted margins in the Clareti business and across the Group as a whole.”
Manocha continued: “The improved resilience enabled the Group to further reduce its dependency on legacy revenues, stepping away from its low margin sub-contracting business at the end of the year.
“The Group has now completed its transformation into a modern subscription software and cloud services business. Whilst markets remain difficult, with elongated sales cycles, we have made a positive start to 2024.”
It comes three weeks after Gresham announced it is set to be bought by STG Partners, an American private equity firm, for just under £150m.
This deal requires the approval of shareholders, who will vote on it on 16 May.
Gresham’s board said that the “low level of liquidity” on the London Stock Exchange was a key factor in its decision to step away from the public markets.
The news sent shares in Gresham soaring and the stock is up nearly 40 per cent year to date.