Kettle specialist welcomes ‘solid’ annual performance
Strix, the Isle of Man-based kettle safety controls manufacturer and supplier, has unveiled a ‘solid performance’ for the year to December 31, 2018.
The AIM-listed business designs, manufactures and supplies kettle safety controls and other water temperature management components.
Turnover for the year rose by 2.7% to £93.8m, while pre-tax profits of £29.2m were a 3.2% improvement on the previous year.
The company enjoyed a 7.9% growth in sales volumes and 2.7% in net sales, rising to 4.5% on a constant currency basis, in line with expectations.
Net debt reduced to £27.5m, a 40.1% reduction since December 2017.
A proposed final dividend of 4.7p per share represents a 147.4% increase on the previous year.
During the reporting period the firm said it maintained market share of around 38% of the global kettle controls market, despite geo-political events.
It also appointed a chief commercial officer, with effect from from April 1, 2019, and is further strengthening its R&D and senior management teams.
Strix has also, this month, completed a £980,000 acquisition of specified assets from HaloSource Corporation to expand the water filtration division.
And an investment agreement has been signed with the local government for the relocation of the manufacturing operation in China to support future growth.
Chief executive Mark Bartlett said: “We are pleased to report a solid year of trading for Strix in 2018.
“We continued to make encouraging progress with our strategic priorities which enabled us to maintain our global market share of around 38% amidst a challenging geo-political climate.
“Aqua Optima has continued to show strong growth and we secured a market share within the UK of 25%.
“We also launched the Aqua Optima Water Filter Recycling Initiative, which allows consumers of Aqua Optima filtration systems to recycle their products from home or at hundreds of TerraCycle collecting locations across the UK.
“We saw positive progress on the U9 series of controls and since its launch in 2017 we have sold nearly three million units. With this in mind, we have entered 2019 with the most diversified product portfolio Strix has had to date, providing access to all global markets.”
He added: “Intellectual property protection remains a key focus of the business to ensure defence of our technology and products in order to maintain the value of our brand.
“In 2018 we concluded the highest number of cases in any one year and we continue to monitor the market for copyists and ensure that consumers, our customers and our brand are protected.
“The board are delighted to announce a proposed final dividend of 4.7p, equating to a total dividend of 7p per share for 2018. We look forward to the year ahead and remain confident about our full year outlook for 2019.”
