LONDON (Alliance News) - Pipehawk PLC on Friday said its pretax loss narrowed in its recent financial year but said its results were disappointing overall as revenue fell and on-going costs increased.
PipeHawk shares were down 12% to 3.75 pence on Friday, making it one of the worst performers in the AIM All-Share.
The company, which makes ground probing radar equipment, said its pretax loss for the year to June 30 was GBP473,000, down from a GBP1.8 million loss a year earlier. The loss last year was driven higher by development costs of GBP2.5 million which were not repeated this year.
Revenue for the company was down to GBP5.1 million from GBP5.2 million a year earlier and the fall was exacerbated by an increase in recurring costs over the year. Staff costs rose to GBP2.4 million from GBP2.1 million last year and other operating costs increased to GBP3.2 million from GBP2.4 million.
The company said its QM Systems business generated revenue growth of 10% in the year, though the company also invested significantly in the unit. In the first half, it said it had expanded its headcount, factory and office space.
PipeHawk said that it made the move in the year to locate a production line for a key client in India, rather than in the UK. It said that while it has recovered its costs from the investment in this project, the profitability on the contract was significantly reduced.
The group said its Aiden utility detection business was profitable in the year, but was facing difficult trading conditions. It said SUMO, in which it has a 28.4% stake, posted an operating profit, though this was not accounted for in its operating results as it is a joint venture.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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PipeHawk (PIP)