NFC.L Share News (NFC)

Technology and consumer-focused PR firm Next Fifteen Communications has made a good start to its financial year and it is on course for revenue and earnings growth of more than 10% this year. The US continues to grow strongly with Asia not far behind. The UK is starting to pick up but the rest of Europe remains flat. Chief executive Tim Dyson says that digital remains the main focus of acquisitions. The group has won work for social network gaming companies, Zynga and Playfish. Although these were not directly won by the digital agency Beyond, the expertise it provided helped to gain the work. Dyson says that the money spent on digital does not all come from the normal PR budget and it enables the group to generate revenues from other parts of the marketing budget. AIM-quoted Next Fifteen is also looking for acquisitions in emerging markets and in the healthcare sector - pharma and medical technology. The most recent acquisition is 85%-owned technology-focused investor relations provider Blueshirt. The US-based company is performing well and Dyson believes that a large US flotation, by a high-profile company such as Facebook, could spark the IPO market back into life. There are already signs of improvement but IPO levels remain relatively low. Edison Investment Research forecasts a rise in revenue from £72.3m to £80.6m in the year to 1 August 2011. Underlying profit is expected to rise from £6.61m to £8m, while fully diluted earnings per share are forecast to grow from 7.5p a share to 8.4p a share. The interim figures will be published on 5 April.