Positive Halma results fail to lift shares

The price of shares in FTSE 100 safety equipment firm Halma (LON:HLMA) slipped 5.85% to 2,187p (as of 11:30 BST) despite the firm reporting an 8% rise in pre-tax profits for the year ended 31st March. Revenues were up by 11% for the period, but they have dropped by 4% during the first quarter due to the impact of COVID-19. The exact timing of the recovery remains uncertain and management anticipate adjusted profits before tax for the current financial year to roughly 5-10% lower than the prior 12 months.

CEO Andrew Williams commented: “Halma delivered a record financial performance in the past year, and trading in the first quarter has been resilient despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. This reflects our clear purpose and focused strategy, our flexible and agile organisation, and the resilient, long-term growth drivers in our chosen markets. We expect these strengths, combined with the quality of our people and our increasing investment in innovation and technology, to enable us to continue to create value for all of our key stakeholders in the years ahead“.