LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Gooch & Housego posted a strong rise in profits for the year ended 30 September as demand from aerospace and defence customers helped offset weaker industrial markets and supported double-digit revenue growth.
The AIM-traded photonics group reported a 10.7% increase in revenue to £150.5m, or 5.6% on an organic constant currency basis, while adjusted operating profit rose 37.3% to £14.4m.

Adjusted profit before tax jumped 46.8% to £11.9m, lifting adjusted earnings per share by 38.8% to 35.4p.

Aerospace and defence was the standout performer, with sales surging 52.1% as the business secured new programme wins and benefited from record order intake.

Industrial demand weakened, falling 5.3%, while life sciences was flat.

The order book increased 36.2% to £142.4m, with more than 80% due to be billed in the current financial year, giving the company strong visibility on revenue.

Order intake for the period reached £178.6m.

Statutory profit before tax rose 26.6% to £5.3m, while basic earnings per share increased 7.9% to 13.7p.

The board maintained the total dividend at 13.2p.

Net debt widened to £43.9m from £25.8m after the group spent £10.1m on acquisitions and invested £7.5m in inventory as part of its transformation plan.

Leverage rose to 1.3 times from 0.9 times.

Gooch & Housego continued to reshape its portfolio through so-called "speed to value" acquisitions, purchasing Phoenix Optical in October 2024 and Global Photonics in June this year.

Both deals are intended to strengthen the group's capabilities in areas aligned with its strategic plan, which targets mid-teen returns on sales over the medium term.

Chief executive Charlie Peppiatt said the company had delivered "substantial progress" despite a testing backdrop.

"Our operational performance has shown sustained improvement and resilience in the face of a complex and uncertain macroeconomic environment, with unprecedented supply chain and tariff challenges," he said.

He added that the advancing strategy, growing order book and the group's "differentiated photonics expertise aligned to markets with structural growth from megatrends" underpinned confidence in achieving further gains.

The board said its expectations for the 2026 financial year were unchanged and that the group remained on track to deliver profitable growth over the medium term.

At 1220 GMT, shares in Gooch & Housego were up 11.33% at 570p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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