RM satisfied with Q1 trading

Education-focused IT player continues its fightback by revealing FY2015 Q1 is in line with expectations

Oxfordshire-based RM held its AGM earlier today, where non-exec chairman John Poulter was expected to tell the board that the company was on track for Q1 2015.

In a document sent to the London Stock Exchange, Poulter said: “Trading in the first quarter has been in line with the board’s expectations.”

RM has been hard hit by the death of the Building Schools for the Future programme over the past few years, and in 2013 it announced it was quitting the PC building game, which caused a further drop in revenue for the short term.

But it fought back, announcing last summer in interim results that pre-tax profit had rocketed 46 per cent and said the new focus on software and services will take time to bear fruit.

In its most recent statement, the firm revealed it had also recently sublet one of its buildings in Abingdon after coming to an agreement with South Oxfordshire District Council, taking more pressure off the balance sheet and saving the company an estimated £2.4m.

And it is building its contract pipeline after winning a three-year contract in February to provide education charity AQA with e-marking services.

Cash and short-term deposits as at 28 February were £40.5m, the firm revealed, and it is set to recommend a 21 per cent increase in dividend following its good performance in 2014.

However, the statement urged caution: “The board is mindful of the need for capital discipline and is committed to maintaining an efficient balance sheet over the medium term, taking into account the business's performance and its likely development and investment needs."