Spectris: Trading Update

RNS Number : 3500F

Spectris PLC

17 May 2017

 

                                                                       

Spectris: Trading Update

17 May 2017 - Spectris plc (SXS: LSE), the productivity-enhancing instrumentation and controls company, issues a trading update covering the period from 1 January to 30 April 2017 ('the period').

TRADING UPDATE

Reported sales increased by 22% in the period. Group like-for-like¹ ('LFL') sales increased by 4% against a weak prior year comparator, whilst acquisitions contributed 5% to sales growth and foreign currency exchange movements positively impacted revenues by 13%.

LFL sales grew 11% in Asia Pacific, 4% in Europe and declined by 1% in North America, although in the latter, order growth in certain longer cycle industries such as energy and telecoms outpaced this sales growth. All four segments delivered LFL sales growth in the period, with particularly strong growth in the In-line Instrumentation segment.

The Group continues to be highly cash generative and maintains a strong financial position.

The Project Uplift initiatives are progressing as planned and we still expect a net cost in 2017 of £14 million. Elsewhere, we have identified further restructuring activities to enhance operating performance in certain of our businesses, at a cost of £5 million.

ACQUISITIONS

On 15 May, we completed the acquisition of Setpoint for a purchase consideration of $10 million. Setpoint will become an integrated product line of Brüel & Kjær Vibro growing our presence in the condition monitoring market. Setpoint is a leading provider of vibration and condition monitoring solutions to process industries, primarily the oil and gas and power generation sectors.
Its technology enables customers to improve machinery availability, productivity and reliability by delivering accurate condition information.

SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK

Commenting on trading, John O'Higgins, Chief Executive, said: "We are generally encouraged by the performance year to date, which has been in line with expectations. Trading conditions in the period have improved compared with 2016, although performance is still fairly mixed and as a result, the Group's underlying outlook for 2017 remains broadly unchanged. We continue to focus on transitioning our customer offering towards the provision of solutions and this clear strategic direction, as well as broad geographic and end-market diversification and strong financial position, provide the Board with confidence that the company is well positioned for the future."

SITE VISIT

Spectris is today hosting a site visit for analysts and investors to its Millbrook testing facility. The visit will consist of a series of presentations by senior management and a tour of the site. No further update on trading will be provided at this event.

CONFERENCE CALL

A conference call for analysts and investors will be hosted by John O'Higgins, Chief Executive, and Clive Watson, Group Finance Director, at 09.00 today to discuss this statement.

To access the call, please dial [phone], toll free 0808 237 0030 - Pin code: 35225574#.

Or for replay, please dial [phone], toll free 0808 237 0026 - Pin code: 686867#.

Spectris will publish its half-year results for the six months ending 30 June 2017 on 25 July 2017.

¹ At constant exchange rates and excluding acquisitions

Contacts:

Spectris plc

John O'Higgins, Chief Executive                                               [phone]

Clive Watson, Group Finance Director                                   [phone]

Siobhán Andrews, Head of Corporate Affairs                     [phone]

FTI Consulting

Richard Mountain / Susanne Yule                                            [phone]

ABOUT SPECTRIS

Spectris plc is a leading supplier of productivity-enhancing instrumentation and controls. The Company's products and technologies help customers to improve product quality and performance, improve core manufacturing processes, reduce downtime and wastage and reduce time to market. Its global customer base spans a diverse range of end user markets. Spectris operates across four business segments which reflect the applications and industries it serves: Materials Analysis, Test and Measurement, In-line Instrumentation and Industrial Controls. Headquartered in Egham, Surrey, United Kingdom, the Company employs approximately 8,900 people located in more than
30 countries. For more information, visit www.spectris.com.

 

END

 

 

TSTBIGDUSXBBGRL