Bodycote revenue up 18%, FY outlook unchanged

Bodycote reported in-line trading for the first four months of the year, with revenues up in all divisions.

In a trading update for 1 January to the end of April, the company said group revenue rose 18% from the same period a year ago to £227m, or 7.1% at constant exchange rates, while like-for-like revenues were 3.9% higher.

In the Aerospace, Defence & Energy division revenues were up 10.8% or 0.6% at constant exchange rates, while Automotive & General Industrial business revenues rose 23.2%, or 11.8% at CER.

In Civil Aviation, LFL revenues were up 3.8% year-on-year at CER, as weak revenues from the defence sector and lower revenues from the oil and gas sector offset good growth in Western Europe. Meanwhile, car and light truck revenues increased by 7.9%, with strong growth in Europe and emerging markets.

The company had net cash of £10.6m as at 30 April compared to £1.1m at the end of December last year.

Bodycote said its performance in the first four months of the year has been "robust" and in line with the board's expectations. As a result, its outlook for the year as a whole is unchanged.

At 0840 BST, the shares were down 0.3% to 805p.