Here’s why the FirstWave (ASX:FCT) share price is making a splash today

The FirstWave Cloud Technology Ltd (ASX: FCT) share price is continuing an impressive run this week.

This follows the technology company’s announcement today of a leadership change and business update for its fourth-quarter performance.

At the time of writing, the FirstWave share price is up 6%, trading at 8.8 cents after hitting an intraday high of 9.1 cents around midday. This gives the company’s share price a gain of more than 33% in the past week.

Let’s take a closer look at what the company updated the ASX with today.

FirstWave CEO drops resignation bomb

In its first piece of news, FirstWave revealed that CEO Neil Pollock has tendered his resignation with immediate effect.

With the board accepting Mr Pollock’s hasty departure, FirstWave executive chair John Grant will assume leadership responsibilities until the company can find a permanent replacement. No reason was indicated as to why Mr Pollock decided to leave the company.

Mr Grant briefly touched on the outgoing CEO, saying:

The FirstWave Board acknowledges Neil’s contribution to FirstWave since 2017, including over the last 12 months as CEO. Neil leaves with our best wishes for his future endeavours.

The surprise exit appears to have had little bearing on the FirstWave share price, with investors more focused on rewarding the company for its positive Q4 FY21 results.

FirstWave records strong growth

In the same release, FirstWave provided investors with a trading update for its fourth-quarter performance.

The company revealed international annualised recurring revenue (IARR) is expected to exceed $3 million at the financial year’s end. This is up to a 50% increase on the result achieved from the end of the third quarter (roughly $2 million).

FirstWave said its continued focus on expense management and collections led to a reduction in cash burn. This includeed corporate costs such as rent, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and employee costs.

As a result, the company noted that its cash balance was in line with forecasts, sitting at $9.96 million.

Mr Grant went on to talk about FirstWave’s trading performance and FY22 plan, saying:

Our performance in the fourth quarter was encouraging, with international revenue growth continuing and our cash position remaining strong.

On stepping into the CEO role on an interim basis, I will take some time to review the plan for FY22 and will report back to the market as part of our fourth quarter update at the end of the month.

About the FirstWave share price

Despite this week’s massive rise, the FirstWave share price has fallen close to 50% since the start of the year. The company’s share price reached a 52-week low of 6.6 cents before rebounding to May levels.

At today’s price, FirstWave presides a market capitalisation of roughly $65.7 million, with approximately 747 million shares outstanding.

The post Here’s why the FirstWave (ASX:FCT) share price is making a splash today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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