A brief Q1 update from RM shows no surprises for the education software and services provider. The positive news follows non-exec chairman Martyn Ratcliffe's decision last month to relinquish the reigns and handover to new CEO David Brooks (see RM enters next phase as Ratcliffe exits).
Trading in the three months to 28 February has apparently been in line with expectations, with net funds looking better at £39.4m on vs. £12.4m at the same point in 2012. Although it is early days in RM’s current financial year ending 30 November, the company sees its expectations for FY13 unchanged.
Of course, RM’s business is seasonal, and the majority of its revenue and profit arises in the second half of the year – so between June and November. By contrast, the first quarter of the year is the lowest for revenue and order intake. So RM put the caveat in that Q1 ‘is not a reliable indicator of the outcome for the year’. So are we any clearer? We take it to mean, FY13 should be less problematic for RM, barring any unexpected deterioration in the market during the rest of the year.