Avon Protection Share News (AVON)

(Sharecast News) - Avon Rubber expects pre-tax profits to be in line with expectations as strong trading continued throughout the second half of its fiscal year.Order intake momentum across Avon Protection remained "positive", with its military business receiving orders from the US Department of Defense for 116,000 M50 mask systems, bringing total orders for the year to 216,000.Elsewhere, law enforcement continued to deliver growth in all geographies, while tougher market conditions impacted Avon's fire division's performance in the second half of the year.Over in the dairy business, Milkrite, PCI and Farm Services continued to "perform well and in line with the trends in the first half" after Avon acquired the distribution rights to Merrick's calf nurser product line in June for $2.1m.Avon maintained strong operational cash generation but noted that its year-end cash position would also reflect costs associated to its acquisition of Merrick's calf nurser product line.Paul McDonald, Avon's chief executive, said: "Our strong order book provides good visibility going into the new financial year and the business is well positioned to deliver further growth and take advantage of new product opportunities to build a stronger business for the future."As of 1030 BST, Avon shares had picked up 1.44% to 1,410p.