Spirax Group (LON: SPX), the Cheltenham-based industrial engineer supplying thermal energy and fluid-technology equipment, saw its shares fall sharply today after half-year results beat growth guidance on paper. Revenue and profit both grew faster than the wider industrial market, yet the stock dropped as much as 5.6% in early trading.
Shares traded around 7,225p today, down 5.56% from yesterday’s close of 7,650p, having fallen as low as 7,090p intraday. That compares with a 52-week range of 5,950p to 7,919.18p.
Spirax published half-year results for the six months to 30 June before markets opened today. Group revenue rose 5% organically to £863.8m, well ahead of industrial production growth of 1.5% excluding China, while adjusted operating profit rose 6% organically to £171.1m and adjusted earnings per share climbed 9% to 150.0p. The Board raised the interim dividend 3% to 50.4p and reiterated full-year guidance for mid-single-digit organic growth.
Beneath the headline beat, adjusted cash conversion, the share of adjusted operating profit turned into actual cash, fell to 54% from 61% a year earlier, which management attributed to seasonal timing and planned inventory builds. Margins in Steam Thermal Solutions fell 170 basis points to 22.0% on shipment phasing, a detail that appears to have weighed more heavily on the shares than the top-line beat. Electric Thermal Solutions and Watson-Marlow fluid technology both posted higher organic margins over the same period.
Group chief executive Nimesh Patel said: “We have again delivered resilient mid-single-digit organic growth in revenue and profit, well ahead of IP. Driving growth ahead of our markets, in spite of external conditions, is now becoming embedded in how we operate and demonstrates the strengths of our business model and strategic positioning in diversified and attractive end markets.”
Watson-Marlow’s biopharmaceutical orders exceeded sales in the first half, with second-quarter orders the highest since the 2021 pandemic peak.