Senior has reported a dip in half-year profit as production issues with Boeing’s 737 Max spill into its aerospace division.
The FTSE 250 aerospace and defence supplier said operating profit had fallen one per cent to £20.6m. Pre-tax profit also dipped two per cent to £13.2m.
Shares fell nearly four per cent in early trading.
The drop came despite a four per cent rise in revenue to £501.4m, with the firm describing trading as “robust” over the six months ended 30 June.
In Senior’s aerospace division, revenue increased 14 per cent on a constant currency basis, reflecting the ramp up of civil aircraft production rates as travel demand across the globe booms.
But the group said 737 Max volumes had been “subdued” following the Alaska Airlines incident in January, when a door panel on a Boeing-manufactured plane blew out mid-flight, sparking a crisis that has seen the US plane-maker’s chief executive depart and shares fall by nearly a third this year to date.
“We have been closely following the discussions between Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration regarding the 737 MAX, noting the understandably cautious approach to increasing production volumes. Increases are taking longer than the industry might have hoped at the start of the year,” the firm’s statement read.
Chief executive David Squires said: “Our Aerospace revenue and profits have grown strongly notwithstanding 737 MAX volumes being subdued as a consequence of the ongoing situation at Boeing.
He added: “The group’s diversified position across key civil and defence aircraft platforms, strong order intake and increasing aircraft build rates are expected to drive good growth in Aerospace for the full-year.
“Overall, the Board’s expectations of good growth for the hroup in 2024 are unchanged.”
Senior recently announced a five-year contract with Rolls Royce for the supply of aerofoils for the FTSE 100 giant’s Pearl engine family, which are used by ultra-long range business jet platforms.