Ebiquity half-year revenues hit by Covid-19

The company’s interim financial results for the six months to 30 June 2020 show that revenues fell from £35.3m in the first two quarters of 2019 to £26.8m this year.

This led to an underlying operating loss of £1.4m before tax, compared with a £3.4m profit before tax in 2019.

Overall, there was a statutory loss of £1.7m in the first six months of the year, compared with a £4.2m statutory loss in the same period last year. This meant that shareholders lost 2.6p per share.

The company said that Covid-19 had led to the losses in the first half of the year, but said some of the impact had been offset by acquiring new clients.

There was also a 12% reduction in underlying operating costs to £28.1m, including through use of government support schemes.

The media division at Ebiquity saw a 21% contraction in revenue, with the analytics and tech department also seeing a 36% fall in revenue in the first half of 2020.

Ebiquity has reduced net debt by £700,000 to £5.1m and has cash balances of £14.5m, according to the financial results.

Nick Waters, chief executive of Ebiquity, said: “The half-year results are indicative of the challenges posed by the global Covid-19 pandemic on our customers and markets which have been impacted as advertisers reduced marketing budgets and related consultancy services.

“While the outlook for the rest of the year remains difficult to predict accurately, there are encouraging signs of recovery as existing clients re-commission work previously deferred and new work is mandated.”