Sophos locks in profits in annual results

FTSE 250 cyber-security firm Sophos (LON:SOPH) announced an 11% improvement in group revenues for the year ended 31st March, driven by rising subscription income. Billings were flat year-on-year against extremely tough comparatives, but renewal rates remained about 120% due to high levels of cross-selling. The company also booked a pre-tax profit of $54 million, a significant turnaround from last year’s losses.

Chief executive Kris Hagerman said: “Despite the challenges we faced in FY19, we are pleased with the strategic progress we made during the year. The demand environment for cybersecurity solutions continues to be robust, and we are confident that we are well positioned competitively, especially as more organisations move to adopt next-generation cybersecurity offerings. Increasingly, organisations of all sizes are looking for cloud-native solutions, centralised administration, integrated products, AI-powered protection, openness, and a service-oriented approach to security. Our next-gen solution set and strategy align well with these demands and have helped Sophos deliver strong growth in subscription revenue and customer count. We have become a leader in the next-gen cybersecurity market, and we are excited about the road ahead“.

Sophos’ share price climbed by 15.15% to 391.50p (as of 15:00 BST).