Record results for Rotork

1st Mar 2011 07:04

Valve and actuators group Rotork delivered record revenue and profit in 2010, with all three of its divisions making progress.Revenue rose 7.6%, or 6.5% using constant exchange rates (CER), to £380.6m in 2010 from £353.5m in 2009. The market had been expecting sales of £374.5m.Adjusted profit before tax also came in ahead of expectations. It rose 8.8% (CER: +4.7%) to £99.6m, versus expectations of £98.7m, from £91.5m in 2009.Reported profit before tax rose to £97.9m from £90.9m the year before. Rotork Controls, the division which manufactures electric actuators and which generates the bulk of the group's revenue, saw revenue growth of 7.0% to £243.4m.Rotork Fluid Systems, which manufactures pneumatic and hydraulic actuators, primarily for the oil and gas industry, grew revenue by 7.1% to £106.8m. This was the division that was most hit by the global recession and accordingly has seen the sharpest recovery in orders, with order input up 35.1% on 2009.The division's operating margins reduced from 14.3% in 2009 to 12.4% in 2010, though there was some improvement in the latter half of the year.Rotork Gears grew revenue by 6.5% to £39.2m, and improved margins to 23.2%, reversing most of the decline seen in 2009.Group cash at the end of 2010 stood at £97.9m, up from £78.7m at the end of 2009.A final dividend of 19.75p has been recommended, making the full year pay-out 32.5p, up from 28.4p in 2009. "Following several years of favourable movements in foreign exchange, currency may provide a headwind in the current year. However, the current order book and market activity support the board's expectation of making further progress in 2011," said Peter France, Rotork's chief executive.