Diligent boosts 1Q sales 84% amid strong growth outside US
Revenue of $US15.1m in the three months ended March 31 from $US8.2m a year earlier.
Diligent Board Member Services, whose software helps directors manage corporate governance information flows, boosted first quarter sales 84 percent from a year earlier, with rapid growth outside its power base in the US.
Revenue climbed to $US15.1 million in the three months ended March 31 from $US8.2 million a year earlier, with a 2 percent lift in new sales to $US6.6 million, the New York-based company says in a statement. Diligent had a retention rate of 97 percent in the year ended March 31.
The fastest growth came in the Asia/Pacific region, where revenue surged 368 percent to $US1.1 million, followed by Europe, Middle East and Africa, up 127 percent to $US2.7 million. Its revenue in the Americas gained 67 percent to $US11.4 million.
The result "highlights the importance of client retention as a key driver of this consistent revenue growth", the company says. "We believe this is among the best retention rates for companies in the Software-as-a-Service sector like Diligent."
The sales growth comes after Diligent posted a tripling in annual profit last year with annual revenue more than doubling to $US43.7 million.
It added a further $US3.1 million in cash for a balance of some $US36.5 million at the end of the period.
The software company plans to boost investment in research and development this year, and has hired an extra seven R&D staff in the first quarter. A further three people were added to general and administrative staff.
Diligent yesterday announced its new incentive scheme for chief executive Alex Sodi after discovering it had granted him too many options and was forced to backtrack. The new scheme is linked to earnings and revenue growth, and may cost the firm as much as $US6.3 million if Mr Sodi meets all of those targets.
The shares slipped 0.2 percent to $6.35 yesterday and have gained 16 percent this year.
(BusinessDesk)
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Diligent boosts 1Q sales 84% amid strong growth outside US
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