MTI Wireless Edge warns on profits due to slow military contract

Flat panel broadband antenna manufacturer and wireless irrigation solutions provider MTI Wireless Edge updated the market on its trading in the three months to 30 September on Wednesday, as well as for the year to 31 December.

The AIM-traded company’s board said it expected to report “strong” third quarter revenue generation from both the antenna division and the wireless irrigation division.

However, it said greater-than-anticipated costs were incurred and recognised in the period, in relation to a military antenna project.

“This has resulted in the antenna division making an operating loss in the third quarter, although the board expects that this military antenna project will be profitable once completed,” the company’s statement read.

“The wireless irrigation division continued to perform strongly in the [period] and delivered robust operating profit margins, which has led to the group trading profitably on a consolidated basis in the third quarter.”

MTI’s board said it was “optimistic” regarding trading in the fourth quarter of 2017, however, given the antenna division's trading in the third quarter it now expected that group profitability for the current financial year would likely be “slightly lower” than current market expectations.

It said it anticipated that MTI's group profitability for the year to 31 December 2018 would remain in line with current market expectations for that year.