The UK Investor Magazine was delighted to welcome 1Spatial to our Investor Conference at the London Stock Exchange 13th March.
In this article, we feature geospatial SaaS company 1Spatial, summarising its investment case as presented by the team at last week’s event.
Key facts 1Spatial (LON:SPA)
Market capitalisation: £66m
Price: 59p
52-week high/low 65p / 44p
Analyst Target Price: 80p
Based in Cambridge, with some 350 employees globally, the highly innovative 1Spatial group, is a global leader that has been at the forefront of providing software to manage location data for over 30 years.
It provides Location Master Data Management software, solutions and business applications, primarily to the Government, Utilities and Transport sectors via the 1Spatial platform.
The group, which has operations in the UK, Ireland, USA, France, Belgium, Tunisia and Australia, helps its customers to make better business decisions by unlocking the value of location data.
The group’s user-friendly, no-code, cloud-enabled solutions and business applications facilitate automated data governance, while delivering increased efficiencies and significant cost-savings.
Its solutions ensure data governance, facilitating the efficient, effective and sustainable operation of customers around the world.
Three Main Platforms
The generator for the group’s development into two new markets is based upon its existing enterprise business – namely its Location Data Management software platform, which is the heart of 1Spatial and its competitive advantage.
The fast-developing other platforms are two new high gross margin Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms, which are cloud-based and fully scalable.
SaaS is a software licensing and delivery model, where software is licensed on a subscription basis and is centrally hosted.
1streetworks is a platform that can create a compliant traffic management plan in less than two minutes, requiring no specialist software or hardware, able to be accessed from anywhere, on any browser in real time by all stakeholders.
The 1Streetworks’ cloud-based SaaS solution is the first solution in the market to fully automate the production of traffic management plans, diversion routing and asset inventory lists and has the potential to fundamentally change the industry.
It is worth noting that there are some 4m roadworks a year on low-speed roads alone, which gives the group an addressable market worth over £400m in ARR.
Aimed at the US market, the NG9-1-1 (Emergency Services) platform is the next generation cloud service that enables counties and cities to cleanse their data, ensuring compliance with National Emergency Number Association standards and ensuring accuracy of location data for NG9-1-1 call routing.
Geospatial Data Analysis
Geospatial data analysis involves collecting, combining, and visualising various types of geospatial data which is used to model and represent how people, objects, and phenomena interact within space, as well as helping to make predictions based on trends in the relationships between places.
The company aims to solve the world’s most difficult geospatial challenges with its leading software and solutions, thereby enabling its customers to make better informed decisions saving money, saving time, saving lives and contributing to a more sustainable world.
The Geospatial Information Systems Market is currently worth $10bn, which is estimated to more than double by 2027 to $21bn, and secondly, the mainstream Master Data Management market, which is worth $16.6bn but estimated to triple by 2030 to $54bn.
The 1Spatial Platform
The 1Spatial platform is a comprehensive set of data and system agnostic LMDM software components which helps ensure master data is compliant, current, complete, consistent, and coordinated – and that customers can be confident it will remain that way as it evolves.
It allows them to master their data on any device, anywhere, anytime and can be deployed as SaaS in the cloud, on-premise, or as a hybrid of both.
The 1Spatial Platform consists of a complete set of LMDM software components, which combine servers, portals, dashboards, software development kits, application
programming interface, data connectors, business-focussed applications, the patented 1Integrate rules engine and the 1Data Gateway self-service web portal.
Group Clients
The group works together with government, utility and transport sectors around the world to meet the green agenda, support the investment in infrastructure upgrades and help organisations implement strategies in response to the digital transformation taking place across all industries.
It collaborates with global partners on large-scale data transformation projects and tap into a broader network of prospective clients.
Globally the company’s 1,000 plus clients include national mapping and land management agencies, utility companies, transportation organisations, government and defence departments.
The group’s key customers are located in over 25 countries across the globe.
In the UK & Ireland its clients include UK Power Networks, HS2, United Utilities, Ordnance Survey, the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs, and the Rural Payments Agency amongst hundreds of others.
In the US its fast-growing customers list includes Google, United States Census, Coltrans, and an increasing number of States Government bodies.
Included in its France & Belgium clients roll are EDF, VINCI, Veolia, Airbus, and Engie.
In Australia Hunter Water, Nova Systems, North East Water are amongst businesses on its clients list.
Its Partners
The company partners with major technology consultancies and GIS providers such as ESRI, CGI, Atkins, Version 1, QinetiQ, Atos, Infosys, Version1, VertiGIS Studio and Landmark.
Its partners include tech consultancies, systems integrators, software developers, professional services firms and geospatial specialists.
Recent Orders
The group continues to invest in its SaaS based solutions, notably 1Streetworks in the UK alongside NG911 in the US.
Trials for both these products have progressed well over the last 12 months, resulting in the first 12-month licence for 1Streetworks with UK Power Networks and five annual NG911 SaaS licences.
In late February this year following completion of a successful paid trial, the UK Power Networks gave the company a 12-month contract for its 1Streetworks Traffic Management Plan solution.
UK Power Networks has 190,000km of cables and delivers thousands of streetworks every year across London, the South-East and East of England, to maintain safe and reliable power supplies to 19m people.
The company has a further four paid trials currently in place, together with several additional paid trials due to commence in the first half of 2024 across utilities, highway authorities and traffic management organisations.
For the NG911 SaaS application, the company is exploring a partner-led go to market strategy to accelerate the growth, which will provide wider market coverage of this key market.
Going Forward
The group considers that the demand for location data has never been greater.
1Spatial sits right at the heart of significant growth opportunities across multiple sectors, enabling a smarter, safer and more sustainable world.
It has a valuable customer base, while it operates a scalable business model and is enjoying a strengthening financial position.
Targeting ARR Growth
Annualised Recurring Revenue is the annualised value at the year-end of committed recurring contracts for term licences and support and maintenance.
The group’s existing enterprise business enjoys a 53% annual recurring revenue.
The potential for its two newer SaaS focussed businesses offers massive scope for very much higher ARR – with 80% being a near-term aim.
The group is focussed on growing recurring subscription term licences, its SaaS strategy and other recurring revenue from long-term contracts will continue to deliver revenue growth with improved gross margins.
Professional Shareholders List
Amongst the larger shareholders in the group’s equity Columbia Threadneedle Investments hold 19.94% of the group’s 110,859,545 shares in issue.
Others include Canaccord Genuity Fund Management (17.63%), Azini Capital Partners (12.37%), BGF Investment Management (6.25%), JO Hambro Capital Management (3.95%), Octopus Investments Nominees (3.71%), Herald Investment Management (3.56%), and Downing (3.02%).
Analyst Views
Ahead of the Final Results to end January this year, being announced on 24th April, analysts Andrew Ripper and Caspar Erskine at Liberum Capital have the shares of the group rated as a Buy, with a Target Price of 80p.
They estimate that the last year’s revenues were £32m (£30m) while its pre-tax profits were £2.2m (£1.8m), lifting earnings up to 2.0p (1.6p) per share, with no dividend being paid.
For the current year their figures suggest £35m in sales, £3.2m profits and 2.8p per share of earnings.
Analysts Max Hayes and Dan Ridsdale at Edison Investment Research have estimates for the 2024 results to show £32.1m sales, EBITDA of £5.5m (£5.0m), with earnings per share of 1.6p.
For the 2025 year to end January they have £35.2m revenues, £6.5m EBITDA and 2.3p of earnings.