Victrex sees FY at upper end of expectations

Polymer manufacturer Victrex on Friday said full-year results could be at the upper end of market expectations as it reported a rise in third quarter revenue.

Group revenue for the three months to June 30 rose 37% year on year to £80.7m with sales volume up 49% to 1,202 tonnes.

On a year-to-date (YTD) basis, group sales volume of 3,289 tonnes was up 18% with YTD group revenue rising 10% to £231.6m.

"Following our positive first half performance, we have continued to see good momentum as the year progresses. Our order book for the final quarter is robust although with some benefit from restocking over recent months, we anticipate run rates may be slightly lower than Q3," said chief executive Jakob Sigurdsson.

"Nevertheless, we are continuing to see a solid recovery from the impact of COVID-19 on our business. Reflecting the volume strength on a year to date basis, we now see the potential for some upside to current full year expectations, with our internal assumptions being closer to the upper end of market expectations."

"At this early stage looking towards FY 2022, many of our end markets are continuing to show good progress, although we note the growing impact from foreign currency headwinds next year, increasing raw material inflation, an anticipated uplift in innovation spend to support our long-term growth pipeline and some costs associated with commissioning our China manufacturing facility."