Professional services business JTC has issued a trading update in advance of its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2021, which will be announced on 21 September.
Despite the ongoing uncertainty as a result of the pandemic, the company said it performed strongly during the first half of the year, with business wins of £10.3m for the period (H1 2020: £8.6m and H1 2019: £5.9m).
The Private Client Services division performed well, while the Institutional Client Services division has focused on embedding operational enhancements, including technology solutions, within the fund services practice.
At group level, the short-term impact of recent acquisitions and operational restructuring has resulted in underlying EBITDA margin for the period slightly below medium-term guidance.
The company said it expected this to improve in H2 to deliver a full-year result within the medium-term guidance range of 33%-38% as recent acquisitions – RBC cees and Indos Financial – are fully integrated into the business and the benefits of operational improvements are realised.
Cash conversion during the period was strong and exceeded medium-term guidance of 85%-90%. Net debt at 30 June was £23.6m (31 December 2020: £75.8m).
Share ownership award
The group has also this week announced an award of JTC shares worth £20m to its global workforce as part of its shared ownership programme – the first such award since its IPO in 2018.
The company maintains its medium-term guidance metrics of 8%-10% net organic revenue growth; underlying EBITDA margin of 33%-38%; net debt of 1.5x to 2.0x underlying EBITDA and cash conversion in the range 85%-90%.
Nigel Le Quesne, CEO of JTC PLC, said: "The positive momentum seen in new business wins, combined with incremental operational improvements, gives us confidence for the remainder of the year.
"Our acquisition pipeline remains strong and we expect to continue to act as a key consolidator in the sector while remaining disciplined in terms of quality and pricing."