Laird's third quarter boosted by Apple iPhone bonanza
A strong third-quarter performance from Laird followed major customer Apple's hugely successful iPhone 6 launch, accelerating revenue growth for the electronic components group.
Laird
199.90p
08:43 29/06/18
Laird grew dollar-denominated revenue 15.1% to $251m in the period from 1 July to 21 October, compared to the same period last year, with 11% growth on an underlying basis in the year to date or 5% in pounds sterling.
With analysts citing mixed newsflow in some of Laird's end markets, management have kept their expectations for the full year unchanged.
This came two days after Apple, which represents roughly 16% of Laird's revenue, revealed it sold a record 39.3m new iPhones in the last three months.
FTSE 250-listed Laird, whose products protect smartphones, tablets and other electronics from heat overload and electromagnetic interference, said almost all its businesses experienced growth across their markets in the quarter.
Revenue for the third quarter grew 6% in sterling to £150m, after accounting for currency translation.
The performance materials division, driven by customer product launches, strong smartphone sales and the continued investment in 4G/LTE infrastructure, lifted sales 10% to $169m on an organic basis, or by 8% in sterling to £101m.
The wireless systems division grew organic revenue 12% to $82m, or 3% in sterling to £49m, as strong infrastructure antennae systems, industrial and medical performance outweighed weaker rail and public safety results.
Chief executive David Lockwood said: "As expected, Laird performed strongly this quarter, and we have benefited from our strategy of investing in innovation, reliable fulfilment and speed. We will continue to invest in both R&D and capacity to deliver sustainable long term growth.
"Our expectations for the full year remain unchanged."
A new Vietnamese performance materials plant and an expanded telematics plant in Shanghai came on stream in the period, with the other major investment project being a new telematics plant in Brazil expected to complete in early 2015.