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(Alliance News) - Focusrite PLC said Tuesday that profit in the first half of audio products firm's financial year dropped substantially due to acquisition costs, despite growth in revenue.
For the six months to the end of February, Focusrite's pretax profit was GBP2.7 million, down 63% to GBP7.2 million a year before. This was due to costs incurred during the period related to the acquisition of Martin Audio in December 2019 and ADAM Audio in July.
Revenue however grew by 24% to GBP49.9 million from GBP40.4 million the prior year, mainly due to contributions from recent acquisitions. Revenue from underlying Focusrite businesses dipped 2.7% to GBP25.6 million from GBP26.3 million a year before.
Focusrite has deferred the decision to declare an interim dividend due to the uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Looking ahead, the group said that consumer demand for its products have been high through e-commerce, with record levels of product registrations at Focusrite, while manufacturing in China has been brought back up to speed.
Demand for Martin Audio products has been affected by the lack of live music events due to Covid-19; however the group anticipates a recovery over time.
"We are delighted to have acquired Martin Audio in December 2019, adding another complementary high quality business, following on the heels of our acquisition of ADAM Audio in July 2019. That was closely followed by the Covid-19 pandemic. We have managed the challenges well and I salute the whole team. As a result of their agile management of the situation, the impact of supply chain issues as a result of Covid-19 was limited to approximately GBP2 million of revenue in February 2020," said Chief Executive Officer Tim Carroll.
Shares in Focusrite were down 3.3% at 580.00 pence on Tuesday in London.
By Dayo Laniyan; dayolaniyan@alliancenews.com
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