As we navigate a pandemic, now is the time for stockpickers to prove their worth

The economy is taking a battering, meaning that funds must do more to find value, writes James Moore

The healthcare sector should be in demand during a crisis so why is Emis struggling? (AFP)

Strange days. You would have thought shares in Emis Health would be in high demand. It’s a healthcare tech company which is heavily involved with the NHS. Tick. It reported a 7 per cent rise in revenues and a 9 per cent jump in operating profits in its latest results. Double tick.

The revenues come largely from subscriptions, which renew annually, and the NHS can be relied upon to pay its bills even when others maybe can’t. Triple tick.

Investors were told that current trading is in line (there’s another tick). But there was a mild warning that there may be “some limited short-term new business revenue delay due to uncertainty around coronavirus”.