International media and events firm, Ascential plc, has reported strong organic revenue growth of 15.3 per cent for its exhibitions and festivals division, according to its H1 interim results.
For the six-month period ending 30 June 2016, the owner of i2i Events (organiser of Money20/20 Europe) delivered:
- Event revenue growth of £119.1m, up from £97.1m in the first half of 2015
- Turnover on a reported basis was £202.5m, compared to £178.4m in the same period last year
- However, the firm’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), was up 21 per cent from £55.4m to £67.3m
- Ascential, which was formerly known as Top Right Group and Emap, also announced a maiden dividend of 1.5p per share.
Duncan Painter, chief executive officer, said: “We have delivered a successful first half result in line with our expectations for this seasonally-stronger period. The performance of our top five products, including Cannes Lions and the launch of Money20/20 Europe, was particularly encouraging.
“Based on the level of our forward bookings we are confident that we will achieve our full year expectations. While economic uncertainty has been increased by the UK’s decision to leave the European Union, our currency mix, market-leading brands, low dependency on advertising and our majority international customer base, provide us a level of protection against this risk.”
