Abcam plc Half Year Trading Update

Abcam returns to growth in first half with over 8% increase in constant currency revenue

CAMBRIDGE, United Kingdom, Jan. 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Abcam plc (AIM: ABC; Nasdaq: ABCM) (“Abcam”), a global leader in the supply of life science research tools, announces the following unaudited trading update ahead of reporting its results on 8 March 2021 for the six months ended 31 December 2020.

Overall, we expect to report total first half revenue of £147.5 million (H1 2020: £138.2 million), representing growth of 8.3% on a constant currency basis and 6.7% on a reported basis. In-house products represented over 55% of total revenue and grew by over 25%.

On a constant currency basis, catalogue revenue, representing 95% of the total, grew approximately 8.0% in the half whilst CP&L⁽¹⁾ revenue grew double-digit. We grew high single- to double-digits in all regions other than the Americas where customer laboratory activity has been more constrained due to COVID-19.

Gross margin is expected to be in line with board expectations at approximately 70.5%, ahead of the first half of last year (H1 2020: 69.7%). We expect to report an adjusted operating margin for the first half of approximately 16%.

We were also pleased to complete in October our US equity listing of American Depositary Shares (ADSs) on The Nasdaq Global Select Market (“Nasdaq”) in October.

Commenting on the first half performance, Alan Hirzel, CEO of Abcam said:
“It is great to see the business return to growth in a market environment where demand is well below normal levels. This performance gives us confidence in the long term opportunity at Abcam. Thank you to our customers for trusting Abcam to support their work during this challenging time and thank you to our global team for their dedication and making our results possible.”

Analyst and Investor Conference Call
A conference call for analysts and investors will be held at 0900 EST / 1400 GMT, today.

To participate in this call, please find details below:

Time:	0900 EST / 1400 GMT
Dial-in:	United Kingdom	[phone] / (Local) [phone]
	United States	[phone] / (Local) [phone]
	All other locations	[phone]
Conference ID:	152030
Webcast:	https://www.incommglobalevents.com/registration/client/6443/abcam-call ...

A replay of the call will be made available on the Company’s website following the event.