Shares in the FTSE-250 listed engineering firm enjoyed a strong start to the day following the publication of interim results. Pre-tax profits were up by more than 50% from the same time a year ago, whilst the forward order book has grown by more than 10%. Strong cash generation has seen debt paid down and the Goodwin share price was up by around 14% at 9am.
At the opposite end of the FTSE-250, Hollywood Bowl had a difficult start to the session despite reporting higher revenues and increased spend per customer visit in its full year results. The leisure operator acknowledged the impact of rising minimum wages and National Insurance contributions but these look relatively modest when compared to some other businesses. Management estimate the increased costs will be around £1.2m a year, but with this coming on top of underlying employment cost increases, there appears to be some wariness building amongst investors. The Hollywood Bowl share price was as much as 10% lower in early trade before finding some support.
Full year numbers from technology business Chemring were also published today. Despite headwinds in H1, the overall performance was in line with management expectations and a record order book was also reported. However, order intake was down 11% year-on-year and there was a sharp increase in debt too, as the company borrowed to fund a share buyback. Directors maintain that they will be able to increase revenues to £1bn by 2030, but the Chemring share price was down by more than 11% at 9.30am.
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Results for the year ended 31 October 2024 - - Chemring Group (CHG)
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