Shares of Manchester-based cyber security company NCC Group rose 5% on Thursday after it published results for the six months to November 30, 2020, showing revenue up 2.2% to £135.6 million and profit before tax up 18.9% to £10.7 million.

NCC said it had major contract wins including “further successes” with its flagship clients including Bose, Facebook and MARTA — and a €25 million contract win after the close of H1 2021 to secure university networks in the Netherlands.

NCC’s CEO Adam Palser said: “I am delighted with our trading performance for the period. 

“The response of my NCC Group colleagues to the challenges caused by the disruption of the pandemic, coupled with robust demand for our services, has led to increased revenues, profitability and cash against a comparator period that pre-dates Covid-19.  

“Once  again, I would like to thank all my colleagues for their exceptional contribution during these challenging times.

“Cyber risks are greater today than they ever have been.

“The rapid adoption of cloud technologies, coupled with spending decisions being delayed in some customer segments, has built up a ‘compliance debt’ that must be paid down in the future.

“Therefore, although ongoing disruption to some customer segments is still holding cyber resilience spend back from its full potential, we expect accelerated market growth in the future.

“Full year trading is in line with our expectations, we are also maintaining our interim dividend of 1.5p and our balance sheet strength and trading resilience give us a foundation to invest in organic and in-organic opportunities.”