YouGov Shares Soar 15% Following Release Of Fresh Results, Signs Of Improving Tech Sector

Polling company YouGov saw its share price rocket following a positive reception to full-year financials and news that conditions in the technology sector are improving.

Shares in the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) company were last trading 14.8% higher at 792p in Tuesday business.

Revenues at YouGov rose 17% during the 12 months to July, to £258.3 million. On an underlying basis sales were up 9% year on year.

The business — which generates most of its profits from the US — said it enjoyed “strong growth across all geographies despite macroeconomic challenges and difficult trading conditions in some markets during the period.”

Adjusted operating profit margins increased 230 basis points, meanwhile, to 18.7%. This helped adjusted operating profit move 33% higher to £48.3 million, or 23% on an underlying basis.

YouGov finished the year with net cash of £107.2 million, up from £37.4 million previously. This followed a share placing in July that raised £51.2 million.

The business raised the full-year dividend 25% from financial 2022, to 8.75p per share.

Strength At The Core

Revenues at its Custom Research unit rose 17% on an underlying basis, to £121.8 million. The firm said that this “stellar” performance was “driven by Mainland Europe on the back of major client wins, and good performance in the UK, particularly in the sports and financial services sectors.”

YouGov noted that sales here were impacted by the slowdown in the US tech sector. However, Stateside underlying revenues were still up by low double-digit percentages, it noted.

Underlying turnover at its Data Products division increased 10% to £85.9 million thanks to what the company described as “strong” subscription renewal rates. YouGov said that “stronger performance in the UK and Mainland Europe was offset by slower growth in the US.”

At Data Services — which specialises in rapid research services — underlying revenues dipped 8% year on year to £47.8 million. The firm said that “demand for fast-turnaround research has been more muted over the past year as client research budgets have come under pressure.”

Tech Sector Picking Up

For the current year YouGov said that trading “has started off in line with expectations,” adding that “the group is starting to see sales momentum returning in the technology sector and expect overall group performance to build through the course of the year.”

Chief executive Steve Hatch commented that “building on the momentum we saw in the first half of the year, YouGov has delivered another year of strong performance [last year] against a challenging macroeconomic backdrop. We have continued to invest for sustainable growth, in line with our strategy, while delivering further margin expansion and robust cash generation.”

Hatch — who took the top seat in August after leaving Meta earlier this year — added that “demand for YouGov’s products and services remains strong with continued new business momentum, high renewal rates and sticky customer relationships. As a result, we remain confident in the Group’s prospects for [this year] and beyond, aiming to maintain the strong sales momentum seen over the past year.”