Management and IT consultancy counter Cornwell joined AIM at 121p in November, and has unveiled a decent set of preliminary figures for calendar 2004. Pre-tax profits were flat at £1.26m (£1.23m), on turnover up 28% to £17.7m, although this reflected the recruitment of extra consultants to fuel growth. Furthermore, positive cash flow and £3.1m of float funds meant the balance sheet sported a healthy £3.6m net cash at the year-end, allowing Cornwell to announce a maiden final dividend of 0.4p. The company, which operates in both the public (86%) and private sectors, claims to be one of the few totally independent consultancies. During the year, Cornwell set about working on 'multiple assignments for multiple clients' to de-risk the business, and made inroads into the health and energy/utility sectors, adding to its work in the government, defence, financial services, commercial and not-for-profit sectors. Cornwell has plenty to play for in a UK consultancy services market worth between £5-10bn a year. For 2005, house broker Arbuthnot Securities suggests pre-tax profits of £2.9m off a top line £21.3m, giving 12.1p of earnings and a forward rating of 12.7. That multiple doesn't seem undemanding for a well-financed, well-managed growth play. Buy.