Earlier this week hVIVO (LON:HVO) reported its Interim Results to end-June, they showed a 30.6% first-half growth in revenues to £35.6m, while its EBITDA was 67.6% higher at £8.7m, with end-period cash up at £37.1m (£1.3m).
The group is a fast-growing specialist contract research organisation and the world leader in testing infectious and respiratory disease vaccines and therapeutics using human challenge clinical trials.
Management Comment
CEO Yamin ‘Mo’ Khan stated that:
“After an exceptionally strong first half with record revenues and margins, hVIVO enters the remainder of the year with FY24 revenue guidance fully contracted and good visibility into 2025.
We continue to expand our pipeline, not only in human challenge trials but also in our new revenue streams including clinical site studies, standalone laboratory services, and volunteer / patient recruitment.
Operational efficiencies are set to continue to improve with the expansion of our services, improved automation, and the move to our new facility in Canary Wharf.
We are pleased to reaffirm our full-year revenue guidance of £62 million and expect EBITDA margins to be at the upper end of market expectations.
We are targeting Group revenue of £100 million by 2028 – this growth will be underpinned by the increased capacity of our facilities, our strong cash position, and our long-term sustainable growth model.”
Institutional Buying
As I have detailed previously, the City investing institutions are becoming ever more aware of this group’s potential and have been gradually building up positions in the group’s equity.
Investors like Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management (3.19%), Rathbones Investment Management (5.01%), and JP Morgan Asset Management (UK) (7.03%) each have taken stakes in the growing business.
However, the one professional investor really showing its faith in hVIVO’s prospects is Octopus Investments, which in the middle of July held just 3.1% of the HVO equity.
Within that month, it had more than doubled its holding to 7.61%.
At the start of August, it was up to 8.0%.
This morning it has been announced that on Tuesday of this week (10th) it upped its stake to 9.08%, some 61,801,224 shares.
The group’s shares are currently trading at around the 29p level, whilst City analysts have Price Objectives ranging from 36p to 42p for its shares.