Spirent grows both top and bottom line in 'solid' first quarter

Telecommunications testing outfit Spirent saw positive momentum from its last trading year carry over into the first quarter of 2019.

The FTSE 250 constituent told investors on Wednesday that its trading performance year-to-date was in line with its plans, with both revenue and earnings growing year-on-year.

In addition to the improvement on both its top and bottom lines, Spirent revealed that its order pipeline remained "robust", with order intake for the period also showing "solid growth".

Spirent expects a weighting to the second half of the year, with the usual uptick in the final quarter of the financial year, and remains confident that it can deliver further strategic progress in the year without adversely affecting its outlook.

Outgoing chief executive Eric Hutchinson said: "The year has started well with continued revenue and profit growth compared to the same period in 2018.

"Our pipeline remains robust, our market-leading technologies, appropriate R&D investment and strong customer relationships continue to underpin our plans to support growth. We have also increased our customer key account reach and account management team to ensure we continue our focused approach to business growth."

The Wednesday morning trading update was Hutchinson's last with the group, he will be replaced by new CEO Eric Updyke, with immediate effect.

As of 0815 BST, Spirent shares were trading 0.76% firmer at 160p.