Manolete Partners' profits leap after focus on recruitment

27th Jun 2019 11:46

(Sharecast News) - Manolete Partners on Thursday reported double-digit increases in its annual profit and revenues after increasing its recruitment and marketing efforts in its maiden year on London's AIM market.The insolvency litigation financing company reported a profit before tax of £5.9m for the year ended 31 March, for an increase of 61% when compared to the year before, while its sales climbed by 30% to £13.8m as the company achieved a good level of realisations, with 35 cases completing.The AIM traded company had 84 live cases, an increase of 47% over the year before, following the recruitment of in-house lawyers the North West, South West & Wales, Eastern, North East, Scottish and Southern regions of the UK and staff numbers rising from seven to 12.As part of its marketing strategy, Manolete also signed an exclusive three-year sponsorship contract with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, became a Key Strategic Partner of R3 and agreed a three year sponsorship deal with the Insolvency Practitioners Association.Steven Cooklin, chief executive of Manolete, said: "The activity levels within the business are at record levels, highlighted by the 44 new case investments that the team has made since the IPO. This firmly underpins our confidence in the current and future trading performance of the business."The company floated on the London Stock Exchange at the end of December, raising £14.6m in the process.For 2019, the company said it is very well-positioned to consolidate its leadership position in the insolvency litigation financing market, with the IPO having raised its profile significantly and a strong stream of new cases.Analysts from Peel Hunt said the company's profit before tax exceeded their most recent forecasts for £6.6m, which itself was an uplift on an earlier £6.0m, and upped the stock's target price to 450p.However, they lowered their recommendation on the stock from 'buy' to 'hold' following recent strong share price gains.Manolete Partners' shares were down 8.63% at 482.00p as of 1147 BST.