Idox, the software supplier, has moved into the black with a £1.1m pre-tax profit following last year's £500,000 loss, and reported a strong sales outlook.

Its shares, down at 5p a year ago, edged ahead again 0.25p to a year high of 12.25p.

Turnover was up 58% to £20.6m and cash balances up 85% to £8.9m in the year to October 31, in which it acquired CAPS Solution for £21.1m and changed its chief executive for the second time in 18 months.

Richard Kellett-Clarke who stepped up from finance director in October when he also bought one million shares, replaced Steve Ainsworth who in 2006 had replaced Andrew Fraser.

Chairman Martin Brooks said: "The group has been revitalised in the last year in refocusing the business on our core software market which has generated a strong improvement in our underlying trading performance and strengthening of our balance sheet."

He said this had been reinforced by the pivotal acquisition of CAPS, which had already been integrated ahead of schedule, and with greater than anticipated recurring cost savings. "The recent combined sales pipeline has grown healthily and the new business outlook is encouraging."

The group now has over 300 local authority customers and has recently secured "large complex contracts" as key sub-contractor under the lead supplier to the Scottish Government and directly to Cambridge City Council and Bromsgrove Council.

"The local authority software and services supplier market is already in the process of consolidating, and we are actively looking for targets that would bring us additional scale, capabilities and synergies," Brooks said. "We are also closely monitoring certain opportunities internationally."