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Highlights
- UK’s National Cyber Security Centre warned British businesses to boost their cyber defence levels ahead of a potential threat.
- NCSC has stated it was unaware of any specific potential attacks on UK based companies.
UK’s cyber security centre, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), warned businesses to boost their cyber defence levels ahead of a potential threat. The move comes amid fears that cyber-attacks could cross borders amid tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
NCSC stated it was critical for companies to be prepared in case of potential attacks. However, the security body added it was unaware of any specific potential attacks on UK based companies.
Earlier this month, on 14 January, Ukraine faced a major cyber-attack that affected around 70 government websites. While Russia was reportedly suspected to be behind the attack, the Kremlin has denied such claims.
Given this situation, here we take a deep dive into 2 FTSE listed cybersecurity stocks and explore their investment opportunities:
- Crossword Cybersecurity PLC (LON:CCS)
Crossword Cybersecurity is a cybersecurity, risk management and related software commercialisation company. The company made its software assurance platform freely available to the British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA) in order to aid them with a self-assessment for the government’s’ Cyber Essentials scheme.
The company’s total income, for the year ended 31 December 2021, rose by 43 per cent to £2.33 million. Moreover, Crosswords expects its 2022 income growth to be around 75 per cent, keeping with market expectations.
Image source: Refinitiv
The company’s shares ended flat at GBX 34.50 on 27 January. The FTSE AIM All-Share index, which it belongs to, closed at 1,086.64, down by 0.97 per cent instead.
The company’s market cap stood at £25.86 million. It was admitted into the LSE on 26 May 2021.
- Darktrace PLC (LON: DARK)
Darktrace is an AI-powered company specialising in cyber defence, and it belongs to the FTSE 250 index.
The company’s H1 2022 customers base grew by 39.6 per cent to 6,531 customers on a year-over-year basis.
It expects its constant currency annualised recurring revenue (ARR), as of 31st December 2021, to be at least US$ 426 million. This would equate to a growth rate of at least 45 per cent. Based on the company’s strong performance, it increased its H2 2022 ARR guidance to be in the range of 37 to 38.5 per cent (up from its earlier outlook of 34 to 36 per cent)
Image source: Refinitiv
The company’s shares ended at GBX 388.00, up by 8.20 per cent on 27 January. The FTSE 250 index, which it belongs to, closed at 21,854.57, down by 0.09 per cent instead.
The company’s market cap stood at £2,499.32 million as of Thursday. It was admitted into the LSE on 30 April 2021.
