LONDON (Alliance News) - Laird PLC Friday said trading was in line with expectations in the first quarter of 2015 and said new product launches in the second half of the year will underpin the company's current full year outlook.
The FTSE 250-listed wireless connectivity and radio frequency engineering company said first quarter revenue rose 24% to GBP149 million from GBP120 million, and in dollar terms it rose to USD226 million from USD199 million. Revenue rose due to increased demand in 2014 that was pushed into 2015.
Its performance material division reported a 31% rise in revenue to GBP97 million from GBP74 million, which includes a contribution from Model Solution, which Laird acquired in April 2014. In dollar terms, performance material division reported revenue of USD147 million compared with USD122 million.
The rise in revenue for the division was after "strong demand" from smartphone customers and higher demand from PC and notebook segments, but the company said revenue from gaming consoles and tablets was lower "as anticipated".
"Our strong performance in the first quarter demonstrates our success in focusing on attractive niche markets, diversifying our customer base and becoming a trusted partner to our customers. Our investment in R&D, and acquisitions such as Model Solution, is creating innovative new products and solutions which continue to drive our growth," said Chief Executive David Lockwood.
Revenue in the wireless systems division increased 13% to GBP52 million from GBP46 million, or USD79 million from USD77 million, with the telematics/machine to machine segment performing strongly, driven by higher demand from the automotive industry and greater demand for the company's M2M antennas. However, infrastructure antennae WLAN revenue fell as did revenue from the public safety sector which continues to be affected by "funding uncertainty" and the timing of purchase decisions, it said in a statement.
"The year has started well, with good growth in our business. We have some visibility on new products to be launched by customers in the second half of the year, which underpins our current full year outlook. We are confident that our strategy will continue to create value for our customers and our shareholders," said Lockwood.
By Joshua Warner; joshuawarner@alliancenews.com; @JoshAlliance
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