Polypipe delivers ‘ resilient’ trading despite disruption
POLYPIPE GROUP said it had witnessed a sustained recovery in revenue over recent months, despite disruption caused by the pandemic.
Polypipe is the largest UKbased manufacturer of plastic piping systems for the residential, commercial, civils and infrastructure sectors by revenue. It is also a leading designer and manufacturer of energy efficient ventilation systems.
Polypipe has issued an update on trading for the four months ended October 31, 2020.
Although uncertainty remains around the possible effects of the second lockdown, the group’s board said it expects underlying operating profit for the year to be at least £ 35m, compared with the current consensus range of £ 30m to £ 35m.
The statement said there had been a sustained recovery, with group revenue for the four months ended October 31, 2020 ahead of the board’s expectations and only 1.5 per cent lower than the prior year at £ 156.1m with continued improvement throughout the period
The residential systems segment’s revenue for the four months ended October 31, 2020 was 3.9 per cent lower than the prior year; compared with 28.1 per cent year- on- year decline in the first half. This has been driven by the UK housing market recovering faster and stronger than expected, Polypipe said.
Martin Payne, the company’s chief executive, commented: “The group’s end markets in the UK have continued to recover ahead of expectations, and I am pleased that the group’s resilient performance in the last four months has reflected this.
“I would like to thank our colleagues around the group for their continued dedication and support in achieving these results.
“The Government in its national lockdown announcements has been clear that construction, manufacturing, and the housing market should all continue to operate normally subject to operating in a Covid- 19 safe environment.
“Whilst still early days into lockdown, there are no signs of any significant changes to demand patterns.
“Looking into 2021, we have strong medium- term fundamentals in our markets, and sustainability at the heart of our business, although we remain alert to the broader macro related risks in the market.
“The board remains confident that the group is well positioned for the future.”