First half showing gives Invensys confidence

Based on a solid first half, technology company Invensys is confident of delivering an improved performance this year on the strength of a healthy order book.

At the halfway point of the financial year, which runs to the end of March, revenue was down 2% on a constant exchange rate (CER) basis to £1,200m from £1,244m in the first six months of the previous financial year.

The order book at the end of September was down 6% on a CER basis at £2,148m from £2,360m a year earlier. Order intake in the reporting period was £1,044m, down 2% at CER from £1,086m the year before, mainly due to the timing of orders at Invensys Operations Management and Invensys Controls.

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Profit before tax climbed to £77m from £73m the year before, while underlying earnings per share rose 10% to 7.6p from 6.9p a year earlier, largely as a result of reduced restructuring costs.

Chief Executive Wayne Edmunds said Invensys Operations Management continued to perform well with growth in revenue and operating margins but, as expected, Invensys Rail got off to a slow start to the year due to timing of orders from Network Rail and other timing issues. The second half of the year should see the rail division kick it up some.

Invensys Controls experienced less volatility in demand within its Appliance business but was generally affected by the weaker economies in the US and Europe, Edmunds revealed.

"Looking ahead, subject to any significant changes to the global macro-economic environment, our good first half performance and strong order book supports our view that we will improve our performance for the year as a whole," Edmunds said.

The interim dividend has been increased by 6% to 1.75p from last year's interim divi of 1.65p.

JH