Pure Profile posts profit slump as it recovers from its ‘challenging’ period
Research and digital advertising company Pure Profile has recorded a profit slump for the 2018 financial year as it recovers from the effects of its troubled Cohort acquisition.
The company, which wrote down $7m in assets ahead of its half year report, saw a 2% slide in revenues to $52.0m, a 7% fall in gross profit to $24.2m and an EBITDA decline from $1.7m to $0.4m.
Pure Profile CEO Nic Jones: “We are again strongly positioned to focus on growing revenues and improving margins.”
Overall after tax, the company reported a net loss after tax of $12.1m, a fall from 2017’s $2.0m.
The results cap off a tumultuous year for Pureprofile which saw Nic Jones appointed CEO last December with founder Paul Chan leaving the business in February.
Later in the year, the company was bogged down in a dispute with shareholders over its acquisition of digital agency Cohort which the online research platform and digital advertising company claimed it was mislead about during the purchase.
At the half year results announcement in March, Jones described the previous six months as a “challenging and transformational period.
In June, former AdRoll Australia boss, Ben Sharp, was appointed head of revenue and operations after his brief stint heading industry body, ADMA.
In announcing the full year’s financials, Jones said: “Stabilising the cost base at around $20-21 million and finding approximately $5 million in savings was a key challenge in the second half of FY2018.
“This took greater time and focus than initially contemplated, particularly without a CFO for much of the year. Focusing on the cost base has been the priority to ensure that the business remains sustainable and our revenues have a greater impact on our bottom line in the long term.
“Having set these foundations, and with a CFO to monitor and maintain the cost base, we are again strongly positioned to focus on growing revenues and improving margins.
“These are key areas that I will be focused on in FY2019, supported by the recent appointments of our Head of Revenue and Operations (ANZ) and Managing Director UK/EU.”
Of the company’s three businesses arms suffered very different fortunes with the data and insights division recording 21% growth to $16.1m, performance marketing jumping 13% to $19.6m but the previously core media operation slumping 27% to $16.4m
In its share market presentation, the company flagged a strategy focused on new business development now it has stablised the business’ cost base.
Give Nic and Ben sometime and we should see dramatic improvements.
Craig
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