Open Orphan PLC (AIM:ORPH) was the first contract research organisation (CRO) to conduct a Covid challenge trial, and in the words of chief executive Yamin ‘Mo’ Khan, it now has approximately 90% of the market in challenge studies whereby “we inoculate each healthy volunteer with a virus and then we test the drug under quarantine conditions.”

That’s a unique USP, and Mo talks about how the business has divested into new streams of revenue such as offering clinical site services to customers, and challenge models including asthma and malaria.

The last set of results showed a 76% increase in revenue and almost a £9 million swing on EBITDA, and chief financial officer Leo Toole says “we see strong potential to continue that kind of growth into future periods with the company aiming to deliver double digit EBITDA percentage points in terms of revenue and profitability.”

Toole says booking off revenue for 2023 is almost finished, and the planning horizon is now stretching into 2024.

Both he and Khan are frustrated with the share price particularly as the backlog order book is worth approximately £65 million pounds which is close to the company’s current (June 2022) market cap. Khan concludes that “as we continue to grow and we build we’ll see a much stronger future and a much improved share price.”