JAMES HALSTEAD PLC

Business and Financial Review • Jul 31, 2024

National Storage Mechanism | Additional information

RNS Number : 4227Y

James Halstead PLC

31 July 2024

31 July 2024

JAMES HALSTEAD PLC

(the "Company")

Trading Update

James Halstead plc, the commercial flooring manufacturer and international distributor, is providing the following trading update ahead of its results for the year ended 30 June 2024.

The Company is fully confident of exceeding the prior year comparatives for profit, cash levels and dividend, with improved profitability seen in the first half continuing into H2.

The Company sells, for the most part, commercial flooring across the world and has seen continued confidence in the segment of resilient sheet flooring that is sold into the healthcare, education and other institutional sectors. Regionally sales into the Middle East and the Americas have been particularly buoyant. Some of the Company's products are focused on domestic sectors and performance of these products have been weaker in several territories - the UK and Europe being the most significant.

Notwithstanding this drag on performance the Group's productive output, gains on product mix and cost control of overheads have bolstered margins.

There have been gains on lower raw material pricing although energy costs, principally electricity, remain high. Notwithstanding the fall in raw materials costs during the year these input costs, in general, are around 50% ahead of June 2020 levels.

Operationally, the widely reported disruption to shipping in the Red Sea has lengthened delivery times and increased costs across the sector, which is particularly difficult for our APAC markets. As a result stock in transit has increased and in response we are holding stocks in the our overseas marketplaces at higher than normal levels.

In summary, profit before tax will be at record levels and in line with (upwardly revised) market expectations.  

The Company expects to announce its results for the year ended 30 June 2024 on 1 October 2024.

The Company also announces that its Nominated Adviser and Broker has changed its name to Panmure Liberum Limited following completion of its own corporate merger.

Enquiries:
James Halstead plc	Tel: 0161 767 2500
Mark Halstead, Chief Executive
Gordon Oliver, Finance Director
Hudson Sandler	Tel: 020 7796 4133
Nick Lyon / Nick Moore
Panmure Liberum (Nomad and Joint Broker)	Tel: 020 7886 2500
Ed Mansfield / Tom Scrivens
Zeus (Joint Broker)         Ben Thorne / Fraser Marshall	Tel: 020 3829 5000

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