BUSINESS NEWS
06 Aug 09. Cobham Results.
2008 2009 Change
Order intake £818m £893m +9%
Total revenue £632m £952m +51%
Underlying1
trading margin 16.8% 17.0% +0.2%pts
Underlying1
profit before tax £107m £141m +32%
Basic profit
before tax £84m £139m
Underlying
earnings per
share (EPS) 6.7p 9.0p +34%
Basic EPS 5.5p 9.3p
Operating cash
conversion 116% 87%
Interim dividend
per share 1.345p 1.48p +10%
Military and government business has performed well with organic revenue growth of 7%, however revenue from commercial activities declined 13% giving 1% organic growth in the Technology Divisions.
Significant contribution to revenue and profit growth from 2008 acquisitions, with M/A-COM integration on track and increasing technology collaboration resulting in new contract awards.
Underlying EPS growth of 34%; or 19% at constant currency translation
Strong operating cash flow of £139m with cash conversion of 87%; gearing at 1.2 times net debt/EBITDA at the period end
Interim dividend increased by 10% to 1.48p
Allan Cook, Cobham Chief Executive, said: “We have seen good levels of organic growth in our military and government businesses in the first half, although this has been partly offset by the anticipated subdued activity in the Defence Communications and Mission Equipment businesses as well as by the generally unfavourable conditions in our commercial markets. Nevertheless, the Group has delivered strong underlying earnings growth and cash generation. “Our core military and government markets continue to be healthy and revenue from vehicle intercoms should increase in the second half. The Board expects to achieve further progress in the full year, with increased levels of organic revenue growth from the Technology Divisions and remains confident of high single digit organic revenue growth over the medium term.”
04 Aug 09. Hawker Beechcraft Acquisition Company, LLC (HBAC) reported lower sales and operating income during the three months ended June 28, 2009, as compared to the same period in 2008, primarily due to adverse market conditions which caused sharply reduced business and general aviation deliveries. Net sales for the three months ended June 28, 2009, were $816.3m, a decrease of $212.4m compared to the second quarter of 2008. The deterioration in the global economy significantly impacted aircraft deliveries. During the quarter, the Company delivered 78 business and general aviation aircraft consisting of 24 jet, 41 turboprop and 13 piston aircraft, as compared to 129 aircraft during the same period in 2008. During the three months ended June 28, 2009, the Company recorded operating income of $39.4m, compared to an operating income of $86.4m during the second quarter of 2008. The reduced aircraft delivery volumes accounted for a significant majority of the reduced operating income. The Company also recorded charges related to its continued work force reductions and as a result of the exit of a leased facility.
10 Aug 09. Iridium Satellite LLC (“Iridium”), the only provider of truly global mobile satellite services (“MSS”), today reported consolidated financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2009. The company reported growth in subscribers, revenue, Operational EBITDA and net income for the second quarter 2009 compared to the second quarter 2008. In addition, the company is on track to complete its planned transaction to combine with GHL Acquisition Corp. (“GHL Acquisition”) (NYX: GHQ, GHQ.U and GHQ.WS), which will take Iridium public. Operating Highlights and Transaction Update The following consolidated financial results for the second quarter 2009 continue to demonstrate the company’s strength despite the global economic downturn. Subscribers were up 23.9% to 347,000 at the close of the second quarter of 2009 from 280,000 at the close of the second quarter of 2008. Commercial service revenue increased 21.6% to $