23rd Mar 2018 09:01
The stock was down 11% at
Smiths Group, which specialises in engineering, detection and medical technology, reported pretax profit of
Firs half adjusted pretax profit totaled
The drop in profit and revenue was attributed to higher research and development costs, negative foreign exchange rate movements, sale of four non-core businesses and the acquisition of Morpho Detection in the second half of 2017 financial year.
Smiths said that growth in its Jorn Crane and Flex-Tek segments was offset by the anticipated decline in Smiths Detection division. On an underlying basis, the group's engineered products division, John Crane, saw revenue growth 3.0% amid the improving trend in global energy markets. Although Flex-Tek revenue rose 10% on an underlying basis, Smiths Detection revenue dropped 11% on an underlying basis.
The group declared an interim dividend of
Looking ahead, the company said its outlook was reaffirmed on a constant currency basis, with performance expected to be slightly improved over the second half of the year. Further growth is anticipated in John Crane and Smiths Detection divisions, supported by new product launches in Smiths Medical.
"Smiths Group made an encouraging start to the year as we continued to execute our strategy for sustainable growth," said Smiths Chief Executive Andy Smith.
"Over the medium-term, we are confident that we will achieve organic revenue growth above our chosen markets, which in aggregate are growing 3-4% annually," Smith added.
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