Spirax-Sarco delivers in-line 2013 results

6th Mar 2014 08:52

Spirax-Sarco Engineering posted an in-line set of results on Thursday, with revenue up four per cent and adjusted profit up 12 per cent, driven by the improvement in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). It was a record year on both counts, with adjusted pre-tax profit rising to £151.1m (2012: £134.9) on revenue of £689.4m (2012: £661.7m).Currency conversion resulted in a small hit to profit, which at constant currency rose 11%, while earnings per share were up 14% in constant currency but 12% when converted. Sales growth was strongest in Asia Pacific, followed by Watson-Marlow and EMEA, while sales in the Americas were marginally lower.Chief Executive Nick Anderson said: "I am pleased to report further good progress in 2013, achieving record sales and profit. Organic sales growth was 4%, led by Asia Pacific. Operating profit increased by 11%, with an outstanding improvement in EMEA."The dividend per share was increased 11% from 53p to 59p.Going forward, Anderson added: "We have a robust and resilient business model built around our direct sales approach. Our fundamental strength and growth strategies give the board confidence that the group will make further progress in 2014, although currency movements have provided a strong headwind in the early months of this year." The group said that while it was "not immune from economic tides", the business is resilient and it planned to focus on strategic actions to out-perform the markets."We are well positioned to leverage the investments we have made to achieve growth and improvements in our business," it added. The shares edged 0.1% higher early on in Thursday's session.NR