Shares in education service provider Navitas Limited (ASX: NVT) are up 6.9% to $4.48 at the time of writing despite posting an after-tax FY18 loss of $55.3 million today, with the loss attributed to a $123.8 million one-off charge associated with rationalising the business portfolio of its Careers and Industry Division.
Navitas also reported revenue of $931 million – down 2.5%, with EBIT down 99% and a final dividend of 8c per share, 70% franked.
Despite a disappointing result, Navitas' operations remain on track with CEO David Buckingham saying Navitas was "meeting the majority of our 2020 KPI targets", exceeding enrolment targets and renewing agreements with key university clients.
Navitas operates in several cities across the globe offering a range of education and training services for students internationally.
Macquarie last month upgraded Navitas to outperform from a neutral rating, with a $4.55 price target on the stock.
Navitas comes up against Idp Education Ltd (ASX: IEL) in the space with childcare centre operator G8 Education Ltd (ASX: GEM) a sector cousin.
