Software and services house Cap Gemini NV – still much better known as Volmac or Cap Volmac – puts a 25.3% jump in net profits for 1996 to the equivalent of $46.8m down to healthy sales growth across all its divisions. It says 1996 was an excellent year, leading to a 16.1% growth in overall sales, although sales growth slowed slightly to 15.7% in the second half from 16.5% in the first. Operating profits continued to grow at a steady rate due to a slowdown in the growth of costs. Its operating margins improved to 13.8% in 1996, while net margins rose to 9.1%. Cap Gemini says it expects further market growth in 1997, particularly in the area of concurrent transformation – integration of purpose-designed software into new corporate strategies. Other growth areas include intranets and systems conversion to cope with the introducton of the single European currency and the Year 2000. Management expects a further healthy growth of the market for software and services in 1997; it is still too early in the year to give a firm forecast of results, it declared. Cap Gemini NV is 58% owned by Cap Gemini SA of Paris, but the minority of the shares are traded on the Amsterdam market.
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