LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - The share price of Ultimate Products plummeted on Monday after the homeware brands group disappointed investors with a profit warning as a result of weaker sales and higher costs.
The company, which owns brands like Salter and Beldray, said annual sales for the financial year ending 31 July are now expected to be broadly flat on the £155.5m of revenue generated last year.

Consensus forecasts currently point to 9% revenue growth for this year, with £169.3m pencilled in by analysts.

Sales in the first half ended 31 January were down 5.7% on last year, as double-digit growth overseas was outweighed by "subdued" market conditions in the UK due to weaker consumer demand for general merchandise. In particular, the company said that comparative air fryer sales in the first quarter were lower as expected due to a sales spike in the prior period.

Ultimate Products also said that the order book for the second half stands just 13% higher than last year, down from 24% at the start of the calendar year, with the pace of new orders having moderated over January.

Meanwhile, elevated freight rates over the summer led to £2m of additional shipping costs in the first half, meaning that full-year EBITDA will be in the range of £14m-16m, compared with the consensus estimate of £20.6m.

"As expected, the first quarter of FY25 proved challenging, driven by subdued consumer spending, global shipping disruption, and the fact that we were lapping the tail end of the spike in air fryer sales last year," said chief executive Andrew Gossage.

Shares were down 23% at 78.01p in early deals.

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