Shares digital

Patsystems (PTS:AIM) – Finals PTP: £2.19m (£1.63m) Divi: 0.33p (0.3p)

Despite a second half shortfall in the number of billable customers using the derivatives software expert’s Promark platform, chief executive David Webber remains confident the recent global market turmoil remains an opportunity and not a threat. ‘We have seen nothing yet that gives us any reason to change our view for 2008,’ he tells Shares. ‘Our recurring revenues are a high percentage of sales and we are a vendor of real-time risk management systems. If anyone is thinking of buying something right now, it’s this,’ Webber continues.

Patsystems ended 2007 with 375 deployments of Promark, against a target of 500 laid down at the time of the £47.5 million cap’s interims last summer. This still represented a huge leap from 129 users at the end of 2006 and Webber confidently rebuts any accusations of flagging momentum when he says: ‘My salesmen got me to 420 users by January and we are looking for 750 to 800 for 2008.’

Webber, who snapped up 200,000 shares at 26p on the day of the results, also remains unconcerned by ION Trading’s acquisition of a 27% stake in his firm. ‘We just get on with the day job,’ he says.

Patsystems offers connectivity, trade processing and risk management capability to derivatives traders and exchanges, through its Promark trading screens and Risk Informer products in particular.

The development of new trading exchanges in such far-flung markets as Turkey, Burma and Malaysia should continue to drive demand for the small cap’s systems, as should penetration of new customers and rising sales into existing ones.

Shares says: The H2 shortfall in new billable users is a concern but the stock remains cheap and a bid cannot be ruled out.

by: Russ Mould