20th Jan 2023 08:15
(Alliance News) - Spirent Communications PLC on Friday said it delivered a strong annual performance in 2022, but noted some hesitance among its clients for the first half of 2023.
In 2022, the provider of testing, analytics and security for telecommunications networks said its results were in line with expectations. Revenue is expected to come in at USD607 million, which is a 5.5% rise from USD576.0 million in 2021.
The Crawley, England-based company said it expects adjusted operating profit to come in slightly ahead of market consensus. According to estimates compiled by Spirent, consensus is for USD127 million, within a range of USD122 million to USD131 million. This would be up 7.2% from USD118.5 million in 2021.
However, Spirent noted that global economic conditions have caused some of its customers to delay their investment decisions in the new year.
"We expect customers to remain committed to their development projects overall, evidenced by no cancellations," the firm said. However, it now expects its annual performance to have a "heavier than usual" weighting towards the second half of 2023.
Shares in the FTSE 250-listed firm fell 8.8% to 253.08 pence each in London on Friday morning.
The company noted its order book grew 7% during 2022. High Speed Ethernet registered especially strong growth, driven by the release of new application security products. This helped to offset the impact of timing in the Lifecycle Service Assurance business.
"Against a challenging market backdrop, we have delivered a good performance, demonstrating the enduring, through-the-cycle strengths of our operating model and service offerings," said Chief Executive Officer Eric Updyke.
"We expect the group to continue to progress in 2023, and in spite of the global economic conditions are confident in our mid-term targets with the long-term structural growth drivers for our business continuing to be compelling."
Spirent expects to release its annual results on March 8.
By Elizabeth Winter, Alliance News senior markets reporter
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