LONDON -- As the old stock market saying goes: IPO stands for "It's Probably Overpriced." Although Facebook is perhaps the current poster child for this proverb, closer to home, the IPO class of 2010 contained quite a few pertinent examples.
SuperGroup
Ocado
And then there was Betfair
Another company that joined the market in 2010 was health care IT firm EMIS
The company slipped under the radar somewhat back in 2010, although I distinctly remember Maynard Paton remarking in the Fool office back then that it looked to be the best of the bunch -- not that it was up against particularly stiff competition, you could argue.
Today's results showed another impressive performance. Sales are up 19% to 43 million pounds, with profit up by the same proportion to 12 million pounds. Like many software companies, this is a high-margin business. It generates decent amounts of cash, too. EMIS produced 22 million pounds in the last six months, giving the company a net cash position of 17 million pounds.
There's a 15% increase in the dividend payable as well. The shares are up 3% to 700 pence today, valuing the company at just more than 400 million pounds. Based on full-year profit forecasts, that represents a somewhat heady price-to-earnings ratio of 22 and a forward yield of 2%. But investors who hopped on board back in 2010, when the shares floated at 300 pence, probably won't be complaining.
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