REG - Knights Group Hldgs - Trading Update

Knights groupAnnouncement

19/05/2022 07:00

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RNS Number : 0186M  Knights Group Holdings PLC  19 May 2022

19 May 2022

Knights Group Holdings plc

("Knights", the "Company" or the "Group")

Full Year Trading Update

Acquisition of Coffin Mew announced separately

Knights today provides a trading update for the full year ended 30 April 2022.

In line with the trading update made on 22 March 2022, the Group anticipates
revenue for the full year of c.£125.5m, up by 22% compared to the prior year
(2021: £103.2m). Underlying PBT is anticipated to be a minimum of £18.1m
(2021: £18.4m).

Net debt as at 30 April 2022 is expected to be £29m (30 April 2021: £21m),
£2m ahead of analyst expectations, reflecting our continued focus on cash
conversion and maintaining industry leading lock-up and debtor days.

 The Group's strong position in its markets, increased scale, national
reputation, differentiated model and unique culture is enabling it to attract
high quality talent, increasingly from Top 40 law firms, with strong client
followings.

Acquisitions announced over the year have integrated well and are performing
as expected, supporting Knights' organic growth in its key markets. There is a
good pipeline of acquisition opportunities and the Group continues to
selectively review a growing number of potential targets, focusing on firms of
quality, with a strong cultural fit and which provide entry to new markets, or
bolt on opportunities to existing offices.

As announced separately today, Knights has agreed to acquire Coffin Mew, a
leading independent law firm, providing entry into new key markets, including
Portsmouth, Southampton, Brighton and Newbury, and significantly expanding the
Group's presence in the South of England.

The Group also announces today that Richard King intends to step down from his
role as Chief Operating Officer. Having put in place strong operational
infrastructure to support the scaling up of the business, both organically and
through acquisition, Richard has decided to pursue other opportunities; he
will leave the Company on 31 May 2022.

David Beech, CEO of Knights, commented:

"The Group has performed as anticipated in our update in March and we are
encouraged by the positive trading momentum we are seeing in the current year.

"Our reputation, culture and model continue to resonate with top industry
talent and we are pleased to see an increased proportion of new recruits
joining us from the Top 40. We have a strong pipeline of acquisition
opportunities of quality independent law firms and are delighted to welcome
the talented team from Coffin Mew to Knights today, who have built a strong
reputation as one of the leading independent law firms in the South East.

"On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Richard for his invaluable
contribution to Knights. He has been instrumental in creating our robust
operational backbone, including installing automation where appropriate in the
business, which positions us with strong foundations for further growth. We
wish him all the best for the future."

Knights will provide a further update on trading with its full year results
announcement in July 2022.

 

- ENDS -

 Knights
 David Beech, CEO                          Via MHP Communications

 Numis (Nomad and Broker)
 Stuart Skinner, Kevin Cruickshank         020 7260 1000
 MHP Communications (Media enquiries)
 Andrew Jaques, Katie Hunt, Eleni Menikou  020 3128 8147

07736 464749
                                           knights@mhpc.com

 

 

Notes to Editors

Knights is a fast-growing, legal and professional services business, ranked
within the UK's top 50 largest law firms by revenue. Knights was one of the
first law firms in the UK to move from the traditional partnership model to a
corporate structure in 2012 and has since grown rapidly. Knights has
specialists in all key areas of corporate and commercial law so that it can
offer end-to-end support to businesses of all sizes and in all sectors. It is
focussed on key UK markets outside London and currently operates from 18
offices located in Birmingham, Cheltenham, Chester, Crawley, Exeter, Leeds,
Leicester, Lincoln, Maidstone, Manchester, Nottingham, Oxford, Sheffield,
Stoke, Teesside, Weybridge, Wilmslow and York.

 

 

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