(Sharecast News) - Power control systems manufacturer XP Power said on Tuesday that its record third‑quarter order intake was largely driven by customers placing orders earlier than usual, rather than a surge in underlying demand, while reported revenues were held back by a one‑off adjustment.
XP Power said Q3 orders rose to £106.8m, up 22% on Q2 and 93% year‑on‑year in constant currency. However, XP noted that underlying demand was similar to the second quarter, with the jump mainly reflecting customers booking ahead as industry lead times lengthened. Its book‑to‑bill ratio strengthened to 1.67x.
Revenues came in at £63.8m, up 12% sequentially and 10% year‑on‑year in constant currency, but included a £3.7m one‑off reduction linked to a US tariff refund. Adjusting for that, revenue was £67.5m, in line with XP's £135m second‑half guidance. The improvement was driven by higher output from its Vietnam facility, where shipments were 70% above Q2.
The FTSE 250-listed group also noted that net debt had dropped sharply to £4.5m from £47.7m at the end of June, helped by £50.2m of cash released from the Comet litigation bond. Leverage fell to 0.1x, with XP expecting to generate net cash again in Q4.
XP reiterated its full‑year guidance and said improving visibility and operational leverage should leave FY27 slightly ahead of current market expectations.
As of 1040 BST, XP shares were down 4.41% at 1,690p.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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