7th Nov 2024 10:38
(Alliance News) - IMI PLC on Thursday said revenue fell in the third quarter of its most recent financial year, and warned that exchange rate headwinds may hurt full-year profit.
The Birmingham, England-based engineering firm said revenue in its third quarter that ended September 30 was 3% lower year-on-year due to foreign currency movements.
IT said third-quarter revenue in its Automation division, which represented 63% of 2023 sales, grew 4% organically during the three-month period compared to last year, and rose 7% in the first nine months of the year to date.
However, IMI said revenue in its Life Technology division, which represented 38% of sales in 2023, fell 5% organically year-on-year, and was 2% lower in the year to date.
The company warned that if November 1 exchange rates of USD1.29 and EUR1.19 to GBP1.0 remained constant for the rest of the year, full-year revenue and adjusted operating profit are likely to fall by around 3% year-on-year.
Despite these potential headwinds, IMI reconfirmed its full-year guidance of adjusted basic earnings per share between 120 pence and 126 pence, compared to 116.8p in 2023. It expects adjusted operating profit growth of around 10% from last year.
Chief Executive Officer Roy Twite said: "We continue to expect good organic growth in 2024, having delivered a resilient performance in the third quarter. Organic revenue was up 1%, with good growth in our Automation platform partly offset by a weaker performance in Life Technology, as expected. Process Automation, our largest business sector, had another excellent quarter with continued momentum across our energy end markets and strong order intake.
"Margins in both platforms were higher in the quarter, benefitting from our significant aftermarket exposure, continued delivery of high value-added solutions for our customers and further efficiency gains."
IMI is due to release its results for the year due to end December 31 on February 28, 2025.
Shares in IMI were up 3.7% at 1,721.00 pence each in London on Thursday morning.
By Emily Parsons, Alliance News reporter
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