Revenue at Keywords Studios rose strongly in the first half of the year, despite the ongoing restraints imposed by Covid.
The Dublin-headquartered company, which offers video games services, said revenue in the first six months of 2021 was 37 per cent higher at €238.7 million, with organic revenue up almost 23 per cent.
The company said growth was driven by robust demand and a buoyant video games market that was developing new content following the disruption experienced last year.
Profit before tax almost doubled in the period to €21.9 million from €11.1 million this time last year.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation was almost 65 per cent higher year on year, at €50.7 million.An interim of dividend of 0.7 per chare was declared, up 20.7 per cent year on year.
"The group has delivered another strong performance and we are seeing ongoing high levels of demand for our services, driven by a buoyant wider video games market which has a renewed focus on content creation," said Jon Hauck, CFO and joint interim chief executive.
‘Acquisition strategy’
"We have continued our acquisition strategy which is building the group into the 'go to' service provider globally, with the recent acquisitions of Tantalus Media, Climax Studios and AMC taking us into new geographies and deepening our Game Development and Art Creation capabilities."
Keywords has made four acquisitions in 2021 for total consideration of up to €105 million. The acquisition of Heavy Iron Studios in January added to its US presence, with the company also entering Australia with the acquisition of Tantalus in March. Other acquisitions included Climax Studios in April and AMC in August.
Looking ahead, Keywords said its trading for the second half of the year had started well, with strong demand for its services.
