The share price has taken a kicking and a BBC programme about the company was far from helpful, but Cupid boss Bill Dobbie insists the future is bright.
The lonely hearts website firm — its brands include flirt.com and benaughty.com, for customers who regard actual dating as mere bureaucracy — said profits in the last year are up 31% to £9.2 million.
It wooed 1.8 million new subscribers last year, and is targeting growth from emerging markets such as India, Brazil, Russia and China. Revenues in the last 12 months are up 51% to £81 million.
The stock fell by nearly a third last month, a concern to long-term investors and those that have piled in on the hope of a takeover bid from US rival Match.com. Dobbie was sanguine, noting that the business rather than the stock price is his main concern. “We are doing well. The share price will catch up with that,” he said.
He expressed frustration with the BBC report that claimed some members had been targeted with fake communications that encouraged them to take out subscriptions. The company denied the claims and insisted it operated in a “legal and appropriate manner”.
The shares recovered some ground today at least, up 2.05p to 138.3p.
