24th Jul 2019 12:59
(Alliance News) - The chair of Trifast PLC warned Wednesday of increasingly volatile markets despite the industrial fastenings firm having delivered "another year of solid growth".
Shares in Trifast were 5.8% lower at 194.94 pence in London on Wednesday.
Speaking at the annual general meeting on Wednesday, Chair Malcolm Diamond said it "continued to perform well across all our regions" for the year ended March with it delivering "another year of solid growth".
In June, Trifast reported revenue grew 5.7% to GBP209.0 million for the year ended March. Pretax profit, meanwhile, narrowed 11% to GBP16.4 million.
"Our ongoing investment in the US is continuing to reward us with very strong growth and new business wins across both the automotive and electronics sectors," Diamond said. "We are also pleased to confirm that Project Atlas remains on track and on budget."
Diamond emphasised Trifast has "flexibility to continue to invest and follow its strategic aims" following the signing of a new GBP80 million banking facility earlier in 2019. The firm also signed up to access an extra GBP40 million in accordion facilities, if required.
"As ever, the search for the next acquisition remains an important objective for us," Diamond added. "Our internal acquisition team is working closely with external advisors in a number of key geographies to help drive our ongoing aspirations in M&A."
With regards to the performance of its Precision Technology Supplies Ltd acquisition, the firm has "settled in well" and was delivering double-digit revenue growth. Trifast bought PTS for GBP11.0 million in April 2018.
"There can be no doubt that the macroeconomic environment has become more volatile over the last twelve months and the associated uncertainty has manifested in lead times on production schedules moving out on a number of new business wins," Diamond cautioned.
"This has impacted the start to financial 2020, also marked by some instances of subdued demand in certain specific geographies as well as the ongoing automotive slowdown," Diamond added. "However, we are pleased to report that our pipeline remains solid and activity levels around the group continue to be encouraging."
Although continuing to monitor markets "closely", Diamond emphasised its expectations for the full year remain unchanged. The firm also reiterated its commitment to a "progressive" dividend policy.
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