Focusrite FY revenues and profits grow amid continued strong customer demand

Music and audio products company Focusrite said on Tuesday that revenue, profits and cash flow had all "grown substantially" in the twelve months ended 31 August.

Focusrite now expects full-year revenues to be ahead of market expectations at approximately £173.0m, up from £130.0m in 2020, largely due to continued strong customer demand across its products and four months' contribution from recently acquired high-end synthesizer company Sequential.

The AIM-listed firm added that underlying earnings were also expected to be ahead of current market expectations, as gross margins had been maintained at similar levels to the prior year at the same time as Focusrite experienced "a substantial decrease" in travel and trade show costs due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

However, despite the strong demand for most of its products, Focusrite stated that it was continuing to experience supply constraints due to the global shortage of semiconductors and other components, while freight and shipping costs were also significantly higher than normal.

Chief executive Tim Carroll said: "The group continues to see increased demand for solutions that enable the creation and playback of audio content for music, postproduction, podcasting, and streaming.

"We remain optimistic about our future prospects as we continue to execute on our strategy of growing our core customer base and focusing on customer value, but in tandem we remain extremely vigilant of the challenges presented by the current disruption to the supply chain and the global shortage of semiconductors and other components as well as any further impact from the pandemic."

As of 1335 BST, Focusrite shares were up 0.17% at 1,718.0p.