accesso Technology Group (ACSO) H1 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Revenue for the half year reached $69.2 million, up 5.2% year-over-year, or 9.9% excluding seasonal labor adjustments, with organic business broadly in line with expectations but impacted by a delayed Middle East/Accesso Horizon project.

• Cash EBITDA was $6.5 million, flat year-over-year but below expectations due to project delays.

• Gross margin improved to 76.2% from 73.5% last year, reflecting efficiency gains and a shift away from low-margin labor revenue.

• 21 new venues won and 26 implementations went live, with 8 wins for Accesso Freedom; strong new business momentum in Ski and Live Entertainment.

• CFO Fern MacDonald passed away; Matthew Boyle appointed as new CFO.

Financial highlights

• Ticketing and distribution revenue grew 18.4% to $51.8 million, driven by core ticketing and strong Ingresso performance.

• Transactional revenue rose 2.3% year-over-year, with e-commerce up 12.7% and virtual queuing down 7.2%.

• Repeatable revenue increased 5.5%, aided by acquisitions and strong maintenance/support growth.

• Non-repeatable (professional services) revenue fell 13.1–30.6% due to cyclical customer demand and project timing.

• Net cash at period end was $18.3 million, with $37.2 million cash and $19.75 million in borrowings.

Outlook and guidance

• Full-year revenue guidance is $150–153 million, impacted by project delays and softer trading volumes.

• Cash EBITDA margin expected in the 13–14% range due to loss of high-margin project revenue.

• Guidance revised downward, but management and board remain optimistic, expecting growth to resume in 2025.