(Alliance News) - Pennant International Group PLC on Friday said it continued to invest in its proprietary software products amid strong growth in Europe.

The Cheltenham, England-based provider of training technologies and product support for various industries, including defence and aerospace, said pretax loss narrowed to GBP367,000 in 2023 from GBP1.4 million a year prior.

Revenue grew 14% to GBP15.5 million from GBP13.7 million. Cost of sales reduced 1.1% to GBP7.8 million from GBP7.9 million. Administrative expenses increased 14% to GBP7.8 million from GBP6.9 million.

Pennant said it was boosted by "strong European revenue growth," underpinned by progress on the Boeing Defence United Kingdom Apache upgrade programme worth about GBP9 million. It anticipates final deliveries in September.

The firm said it continued to invest significantly into its proprietary software products, having invested GBP1.4 million in 2023.

Chair Ian Dighe said: "The board is encouraged by the improvements already realised, reflecting the implementation of the growth strategy, and is optimistic about the group's prospects. Current economic and geo-political trends are driving significant increases in global defence spending and the outlook for our other key markets also appears to be improving; promising growing tailwinds for the group in the short-to-medium term."

He added: "The board believes that this integrated product suite, coupled with the group's underlying strengths - our long-term customer relationships with governments and major original equipment manufacturers, our specialist services together with our quality-assured reputation - will provide opportunities for long-term success."

Pennant shares rose 6.2% to 25.49 pence each on Friday afternoon in London.

By Tom Budszus, Alliance News slot editor

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