Premier Farnell cautious on outlook

Full year profits at electronic components supplier Premier Farnell came in at the bottom end of expectations but its debt pile was smaller than expected.

The company said that it was cautious on the economic outlook as the market remained uncertain and the nature of the business gave it limited forward visibility.

The firm posted adjusted pre-tax profits of £88.5m for 2011, down 1.3% on the year before.

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Analysts had predicted a result anywhere in the range of £88m to £93m, with a consensus figure of £89.9m.

However, the consensus on revenues was right on the money at £973.1m, as were predictions of earnings per share of 17.4p and a full year dividend of 10.4p.

The firm said its balance sheet had been significantly strengthened, with net debt reduced by £25.8m to £237.1m after the sale of wire and cable firm, TPC, earlier in the year.

It also benefitted from the refinancing of its five year £200m revolving credit facility in November and the issuance of $235m five-to-10 year US Private Placement notes in the second half.

Fourth quarter profits were down 11% on the previous year to £20.3m, but the company was quick to point out they were up on the third quarter and compared with a record three months at the end of 2010.

"This performance compares favourably to the latest Semiconductor Industry Association data for the three months to January showing a global year on year sales decline of 8.8% and a quarter-on-quarter decline of 10.2%," the firm said in a statement.