Halma Announces Record Earnings and Strategy for Continued Expansion

Halma p.l.c. has announced record results with profits up 9% to £86m and revenue rising by 1% to £459m. The UK-based group - which includes companies such as Halma Water Management, Palintest, Radio-Tech and Tritech - has posted strong financials to raise shareholder dividends by 7%, the thirty-first consecutive year of increases greater than 5%. The company plans to augment its organic growth efforts through acquisition of complementary technology companies, as it has done for many years.

Halma’s subsidiaries operate in three main market sectors: Health and Analysis, Infrastructure Sensors, and Industrial Safety, creating shareholder value with consistent organic growth and sound acquisitions. Halma companies operate as independent entities under the day-to-day direction of their local management, while reaping the capital and network benefits of a larger multi-national parent.

The company is seeking successful and profitable companies that are closely allied to any of its current market sectors, although photonics, water, fluid technology and health optics are a particular focus. It has £100m earmarked for acquisitions.

“In recent months we have increased our acquisition search activity,” said Allan Stamper, Chief Executive of the Water & Asset Monitoring Division. “Our experience has been that vendors of good quality businesses are now keener to talk but that many remain cautious about whether to sell now or to wait, in the hope that markets will recover in the medium term. Our task is to convince them that they will achieve even greater success by being part of Halma and to structure deals accordingly. We continue to search for businesses in all of our existing market sectors and in all geographic regions.”