MARKET REPORT: Chemring plummets 13% despite record £1bn orders

British defense group Chemring lost a tenth of its value when problems at its countermeasures business in Tennessee eclipsed the largest order book in its history.

On a tough day for the FTSE 250 explosives maker, shares fell 13 per cent, or 47p, to 314.5p, as it continued to lag larger peers such as BAE Systems, which was also down 2.3 per cent, or 27 pence, to 1170 pence. but it’s still up 40 percent over the past two years, compared to Chemring’s rise of just 7 percent.

The liquidation came even as Chemring, which makes countermeasures for 85 per cent of NATO air fleets and 60 per cent of NATO naval fleets, reported a record order book of just over £1 billion. sterling amid political tensions around the world and the war in Ukraine.

It also represented an 8 per cent rise in annual revenue to £510.4 million for the 12 months to the end of October, but profits fell 2 per cent to £66.3 million and the company warned its profit margins have been reduced due to ‘operational challenges in our Tennessee business countermeasures’.

Production at the plant has been affected by adverse weather and delays.

“At a time when much of its peer group is benefiting from increased security risks and global instability, the Chemring defense team continues to shoot itself in the foot,” was the brutal assessment of Russ Mold, director of investments by AJ Bell.

With strong wage growth in the UK making an interest rate cut this Christmas time even more unlikely, the FTSE 100 fell 0.8 per cent, or 66.85 points, to 8,195.2 and the FTSE 250 fell 1.3 per cent, or 270.17 points, to 20,542.86. .

While Chemring fell the most in the second tier, Bunzl led the decline among major companies after warning that lower prices for its products across Europe will hit its profits.

The company, which supplies products such as toilet paper, disposable cups, food packaging and helmets, said it still expected “robust” revenue growth in 2025.

But shares fell 5.7 per cent, or 202p, to 3,356p yesterday.

Commercial property developer Land Securities (or Landsec, as it is known) has bought a 92 per cent stake in Liverpool One shopping center for £490m, as it looks to cash in on retailers’ focus on “better and better” stores. bigger.”

The company bought the stake from a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund, which owned 69 per cent of the centre, and the Duke of Westminster’s property group, Grosvenor, which owned 23 per cent.

Liverpool One is considered one of the main shopping centers in the United Kingdom and has an annual footfall of 22 million people. Landsec shares gained 0.3 per cent, or 1.5p, to 572p.

Shares in FTSE 250 engineering group Goodwin rose 6.8 per cent, or 460p, to 7,220p after it reported a 38 per cent rise in half-year profits to £16.7m following a 9 per cent increase in revenue to £106.4 million.

The company said it expects “a similar level of activity” in the second half of the financial year, which ends April 30.

Analysts at Shore Capital praised an “excellent” set of results.