by Simon Quicke
9 October 2008
Phoenix IT Services has unveiled a picture of the half year
that show growth but contain the signs of continued softening in the market.
The company has indicated pre-tax profit for the first half,
which ends in September, would be up by 18% to £13m.
The statement from Phoenix
pointed to a good pipeline in its divisions. But there was also a recognition
that there had been a softening in the market and some of the deals that were
being discussed were now of a smaller size than in the past.
Earlier this summer the company used its preliminary trading statement as an opportunity to point to softening in the market.
The breakdown of what the company will discuss with
investors in a meeting tomorrow includes an update of the progress of its ICM
Continuous Business division, which has produced 25% operating margin six
months ahead of plan.
It also revealed that its mid-market focused division Servo
was also in line with expectations with its continued shift towards services
now accounting for 66% of its revenues.
Phoenix
also detailed charges in excess of £5m that were related to charges that were
connected with the integration of the businesses it has acquired, including
ICM.
