CentralNic upbeat on continues trading momentum

Online presence and marketing service provider CentralNic said in an update on Monday that its previously-reported positive trading momentum had continued through the third quarter, with its organic growth further accelerating during the period.

The AIM-traded firm said it expected to report revenue of $525m, net revenue of at least $127m, and adjusted EBITDA of at least $61m for the nine months ended 30 September, making for respective increases of 86%, 49% and 89%.

Its adjusted EBITDA-to-net revenue ratio improved to 48%, compared to 38% in the same period last year.

Year-on-year organic growth for the trailing 12 months to 30 September was estimated at 66%.

“This outperformance has been driven predominantly by the growth of the online marketing segment, which continues to win market share as a result of the ever-increasing demand for online customer acquisition services that are privacy-safe,” the board said in its statement.

Cash increased to $83m at period end, from $56m on 31 December, reducing the firm;s net debt to $63m from $81m over the same period, despite the partially debt-financed acquisition of VGL and the recent cash-settled acquisition of Aporia.

Adjusted operating cash conversion was expected to come in at 100%.

“While the directors remain cognisant of the current global macroeconomic environment, they now have confidence that the group will materially exceed the current market expectations for the full year.”

Since the period ended, CentralNic said it entered into a new senior facilities agreement under which $250m of new debt facilities would be provided by a syndicate of six banks.

The board said the new facilities would comprise a $150m term loan and a $100m revolving credit facility.

It said the term loan would be used in part to refinance the existing €126m senior secured bonds, for which a corresponding bond call notice was expected to be issued shortly, and repay drawings under the group's existing revolving credit facility.

The term loan and revolving credit facility had an initial maturity date of October 2026, with an option to extend by a further year.

CentralNic said the borrowing cost of the facilities would be determined by its net leverage, which would initially be 2.75% above SOFR, a “notable reduction” compared to the 7% above three-month EURIBOR for the senior secured bond it was replacing.

The company said it intended to enter into an interest swap transaction to fix part of the variable interest component, adding that the settlement of the payments was scheduled to be completed by the end of October.

“CentralNic continues to build momentum in the third quarter against typical seasonal trends, with year-on-year organic growth now reaching a record 66%, a further acceleration over the 62% reported for the 12-month period ended 30 June,” said chief executive officer Ben Crawford.

“This continued reliable financial performance has allowed us to refinance at a notably improved interest rate, with a pool of quality lending banks which have the means to provide ongoing support to CentralNic's growth strategy.

“We look forward to the future with even greater confidence.”

CentralNic said it would publish its unaudited interim report for the nine months ended 30 September on 22 November.

At 1202 BST, shares in CentralNic were up 7.04% at 128.45p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.