Business Daily (Nairobi)
Kui Kinyanjui
10 January 2008
Kenya's only listed technology company, AccessKenya, overshot its customer targets for 2007, its managers said. It had recruited 1,950 leased line customers against an initial target of 1,720, a 13 per cent overshoot.
Analysts said the figure signalled the growth potential in the ICT market, especially in specific segments such as residential broadband services.
The performance was being driven by the Sh500 million cash reserve that the company netted from last year's initial public offering said Mr Jonathan Somen, the managing director.
The company will launch corporate IT service solutions under the name 'Outsource IT' to expand its service offering from the traditional Internet Service Provision to handling more essential functions for clients. The move signalled the company's intention to capitalise on its November acquisition of Openview Systems -an IT services company.
"We also plan to launch a residential broadband service that will put high speed broadband Internet into the homes of thousands if not tens of thousands of Kenyans," said Mr Somen.
Last year, AccessKenya had revealed its intention to extend its services to the under-served residential market with a customer recruitment target of over 400,000. A partnership with mobile services firm Safaricom also saw the company enter the telephony market.
In September ,last year, AccessKenya raised its leased line target from 1,720 to 1,900. Closing the year with more than 1,950 leased lines meant that the company realised nearly 60 per cent growth in this market segment compared to 1,250 leased lines it had at the end of 2006.
Now recognised as one of the top gainers on the Nairobi Stock Exchange, AccessKenya stock is fast becoming a popular feature on the most highly traded list.
Six months ago, the stock commenced trading on the bourse at Sh10 since then, it has risen to a high of over Sh24, registering a 76 per cent jump in price and registering gains in the depressed trading this year.
Analysts say the stock has a healthy P/E ratio, and is boosted by the company posting good profits over the last few months that are anticipated to continue growing over the next five years as the company explores new opportunities as part of its strategy.
The company's corporate contracts and the it's foray into supplying e-government services should provide the company with a stable environment to thrive in the coming year.
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