Chemring first quarter misses expectations

Defence company Chemring said on Monday that trading in the first quarter of this year was below management’s expectations due to a lower margin sales mix and customer acceptance delays.

Revenue in the three-month period to the end of January came in at £82.9m compared with £61.5m in the same period the year before.

The order book, meanwhile, stood at £593.8m at 31 January compared with £569.6m at the end of October.

Chemring said its expectations for trading and net debt for the full year were unchanged, but results will be weighted towards the second half as a result of the delayed start to the 40mm ammunition contract with a Middle Eastern customer and revenue mix.

Shares in the company, which makes flares and decoys used by military aircraft, tumbled back in October after it warned that full year profit was on course to be a third lower than expected due to contract delays.

At 1245 GMT, Chemring shares were down 4% to 128.23p.