Smiths Group shares tumble as medical unit disruptions hit profits
UK engineering titan Smiths Group’s share price dropped nearly 10 per cent in early morning trading, after medical unit disruptions led to worse-than-expected profits for the year.
Full-year operating profit rose three per cent on an underlying basis to £544m, but missed a company compiled consensus of analysts’ estimates of £548m.
Headline operating profit tumbled 14 per cent to £156m, while revenue at the group’s medical division fell two per cent on an underlying basis to £885m.
The FTSE 100 group has suffered from a combination of currency exchange rates and a “disappointing” performance from its medical business, which saw sales drop two per cent in the last 12 months.
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However, total group revenue climbed two per cent on an underlying basis to £3.21bn in the full-year and the company said it expected to sustain that rate of growth in fiscal 2019.
In a separate announcement this morning the company also said it has signed a deal to sell its water bottling business for $40m (£30m) to Amsino Healthcare.
Today's news comes a week after £7bn merger talks between Smiths Group and US medical technologies giant ICU Medical Inc collapsed.
Smiths Group boss Andy Reynolds Smith struck a confident tone, saying: “FY2018 marks an important milestone on our journey. We said that this would be the year we returned to growth, and we’ve done that. Our next objective is to deliver continued, sustainable growth, on the way to outperforming our markets,” he said.