Half Year Results Announced 2010

Released: 16 Feb 2010

Oakton today announced a net profit after tax of $10.2 million for the half year ended December 2009.

FY2010 Half Year Headlines

• EBITDA of $16.5m (up 47% on the prior corresponding period), NPAT of $10.2m (up 59% pcp), Revenue of $93.3m (down 5% pcp)
• Diluted EPS of 11.1 cents (up 56% pcp)
• Interim fully franked dividend of 2.5 cents (up 233% pcp)
• Operating cash flow of $11.1m, with net debt further reduced to $16.1m ($27m pcp)
• Ended December 2009 with 1,101 staff (down 98 pcp). India at 112 resources (up 12 pcp)
• Key metrics – EBITDA margin (17.7%), utilisation (78.3%) and overhead ratio (9.4%) have met expectations
• Finished 1H FY2010 with booked and committed revenue in excess of 70% of FY2010 full year revenue forecast
• Record sales levels in December 2009 and January 2010 contributing to current and future years revenue
• Recently nominated as one of three finalists in the 2010 BRW client choice awards –Best I.T. Services Firm under $500m revenue
• Continued improvement in existing client service line ratios and introduction of new clients
• Continued focus on project quality and governance processes to reduce risk and improve project profitability

Australian consulting and I.T. services provider Oakton Limited [ASX: OKN] today announced a net profit after tax of $10.2 million for the half year ended December 2009 - a 59.2% increase on the corresponding half year period. Revenue decreased by 4.9% to $93.3 million and EBITDA increased by 47.0% to $16.5 million during the half year period.

The Oakton Board declared a fully-franked interim dividend of 2.5 cents per share. The dividend will be paid on 31st March 2010 with a record date of 18th March 2010.

Neil Wilson, Oakton’s Managing Director and CEO, made comment on the result:

“As the Australian economy continues to emerge from the global financial crisis we anticipate an increased demand for our services, however the extent and speed of the recovery in the IT market place remains gradual, at this stage.

We are pleased to note that measures taken by us in response to the economic downturn have seen a return to margins achieved prior to the crisis and we are well positioned to capitalise on the now increasing demand.

Oakton has been working to strengthen even further our market position as a specialist Consulting and I.T. Services company. Our aim is for growth to be through depth and differentiation, where we have a clear point of difference compared with local and global competitors. Pleasingly, our clients continue to provide very positive feedback on the clarity and focus of our repositioning and we were therefore delighted to be advised last week that we are once again a finalist in the BRW client choice awards.

In recent periods the level of dividend had been reduced, with the aim of strengthening our balance sheet through this period of uncertainty. We can report that our financial position has improved markedly over that period and we are pleased to increase our dividend payout ratio for the period.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank our outstanding team at Oakton, both in Australia and in our increasingly important Indian office. I would also like to thank our clients, shareholders and the wider investment community for their ongoing support and interest in our company”.

Oakton Chairman, Paul Holyoake, commented on the result saying “There is no doubt that Oakton has emerged from the economic downturn a stronger company. We are very fortunate to have great people on the Oakton team who have worked creatively and

energetically to meet our clients’ needs, and we will continue to focus on improved profitability.

Oakton remains a very profitable, forward-looking company and we can now re-engage our growth strategy in the years ahead. On behalf of the Oakton Board I would like to thank our staff, our clients and our shareholders for their efforts and continuing support, particularly during what has been a difficult period for all industry sectors”.

Tenix Contract Termination

Australian consulting and I.T. services provider Oakton Limited [ASX: OKN] today announced that Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd has served on Oakton’s contracting subsidiary a notice purporting to terminate the relevant contract.

As reported in January 2009, the commercial status of a small number of projects was assessed. All of these projects have been finalised, with the exception of a project involving Tenix Solutions IMES Pty Ltd (Tenix) in which a series of issues has arisen.

After the close of trading on the ASX on 15th February 2010, Tenix served on Oakton’s contracting subsidiary a notice purporting to terminate the relevant contract and a claim for damages estimated at $19,364,900. Tenix’s notice was preceded by the referral to arbitration by Oakton of several disputes arising from the contract. Oakton denies the grounds upon which Tenix has purported to terminate the contract and has referred Tenix’s notice to its lawyers.

No further adjustment is required to the company’s financial statements to be released today on account of this matter for the period ended 31 December 2009.

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