SkillSoft rises 14% on back of results

Shares in SkillSoft gained 14 per cent yesterday following the publication of results for last year which were stronger than previously indicated.

The e-learning firm, which employs 200 staff in Dublin, reported a loss of $81.5 million (€66 million) for the 12 months to end January 2004, down from $283.9 million in the previous 12 months.

SkillSoft's results for the fourth-quarter 2004 show it returned to profit, generating net income worth €6.1 million. In the corresponding quarter of 2003, SkillSoft reported a loss of €269.9 million after taking exceptional charges.

The firm reported fourth- quarter revenues of €54.7 million for the latest year, up from $42.9 million in the three months to end January 2003. Turnover for fiscal 2004 was $193.4 million.

Shares in SkillSoft rose 16.24 per cent or $1.30 to close at $11.60, the stock's highest closing price for about two years.

Mr Chuck Moran, SkillSoft president and chief executive, said the results established the foundation for future profitability. The firm had entered this year with a lot of positive momentum, he added.

Last week, SkillSoft indicated its results for the year ended January 31st, 2004 and fiscal 2005 would be better than expected, excluding the potential impact of ongoing legal cases.

SkillSoft has been embroiled in a number of cases over the past year, including a class-action law suit that dates from a slump in SmartForce's shares in the late 1990s, following a profit warning.

The firm settled that particular lawsuit last year but still faces a separate suit from shareholders regarding the restatement of SkillSoft's results following its acquisition of SmartForce in 2002.