JTC shares increased 4.7% to 744p in late morning trading on Friday after the professional services group announced an 8% to 10% revenue growth in HY1 2022, in line with management guidance.
The company highlighted an underlying EBITDA margin of 33% to 38%, with margin progression compared to HY1 2021 as JTC mitigated the impact of cost inflation.
JTC confirmed cash conversion within the guidance range of 85% to 90%, resulting in a leverage reduction of 0.7 times in the financial term and bringing it within guidance of 1.5 to 2 times underlying EBITDA.
In addition, organic growth was driven by record new business wins of £12.6 million, representing a 22% climb against £10.3 million year-on-year.
The group also noted a new business pipeline of £52.2 million at the close of HY1 2022, with an especially strong performance in June giving the company good momentum going forward in HY2.
“In the first half of 2022 we have built upon the strong performance delivered in 2021,” said JTC CEO Nigel Le Quesne.
“The business continues to demonstrate its resilience and agility during a period of macro uncertainty and our record new business wins reflect our ability to attract new clients and provide additional services to existing clients as they navigate both the threats and opportunities presented by the wider markets.”
The firm’s inorganic growth highlights included the smooth integration of its seven businesses acquired in FY 2021 into the JTC Global Platform, with its M&A pipeline remaining active with a selection of small-to-medium size opportunities currently in progress.
JTC commented its targets spanned the Institutional Clients Services Division, alongside the Private Client Services Division, with a special focus on the high-growth US market.
The company said it was confident in delivering FY 2022 results in line with market expectations, and reiterated its medium-term guidance.
“All integration programmes for the businesses we acquired in 2021 are on track and we maintain a healthy pipeline of targets in a consolidating sector,” said Le Quesne.
“We look forward to capitalising on our momentum in the second half of the year and, as always, my thanks go to the outstanding global team of JTC employee-owners, who continue to deliver service excellence for our clients and drive the Group forwards.”
