Filta Group Holdings PLC (LON:FLTA), a provider of services to commercial kitchens, said it has seen a gradual improvement in activity recently as coronavirus lockdown restrictions ease.
Turnover in May was 14% higher than in April while June’s topped May’s by 38%, the group noted in a trading update
The group’s sanitisation and protection service, FiltaShield, which was launched in May in response to increased concerns about hygiene, has created a lot of interest and not just in the food and beverage sector.
FiltaShield generated around £50,000 in revenue in the week commencing July 6 and the company is confident the top-line will head north as more outlets reopen here and in the USA.
With its core target market hit hard by the coronavirus, the emphasis of Filta this year has been on cash conservation and the group reported that it has been cash generative since the start of the year.
At the end of May, it had net cash of £3.6mln, up from £2.9mln at the end of 2019, with net debt down to £1.4mln from £2.1mln at the end of last year.
The group received proceeds of £1.2mln from the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme on July 10, further strengthening its cash position.
"We are mindful that the coronavirus pandemic remains highly unpredictable and will undoubtedly lead to some level of continued disruption to trading in the coming months; however, the mitigating steps that we have taken leave us well placed to weather these unprecedented trading conditions,” the company said.
It remains too early to provide full-year guidance but the trend remains positive with progress being achieved in all of Filta’s operating regions.
Barring a major second wave of the pandemic, Filta expects the revenue trend seen in the latter stages of the second quarter will continue in the third quarter.