Inkjet printing technology specialist Xaar (XAR) fell 12.3% to 190p after posting a deeper first half loss as rising revenue was offset by increased expenses, including higher R&D spending.
This, plus a highly caveated outlook statement, appeared to prompt fears of an eventual profit warning, despite the company sticking with full year guidance for now.
Often a weak first half creates a situation where a company struggles to catch up and is eventually forced to guide full-year expectations lower.
Pre-tax losses for the six months through June amounted to £5.6 million, compared to £4.8 million for the same six month period a year earlier.
Revenue rose 11% to £26.3 million, which Xaar said was in line with its expectations.
3D PRINTING SALE TAKES LONGER THAN EXPECTED
The company said it would announce details of a planned sale of its 3D-printing division soon, while admitting the process had taken longer than expected.
Notwithstanding the proceeds from any sale of this business the company was sitting on net cash of £17.1 million.
‘We are pleased with our continued strong performance which, despite challenging market conditions, demonstrates the success of our strategy and underlying strength of the business,’ chief executive John Mills said.
‘Our foundations remain strong, as we continue to gain new customers and positively re-engage in our core markets.’
‘The Covid-19 pandemic continues to cause disruption for business, however we are determined to minimise interruption to the supply of printheads, and we are well-positioned to withstand further volatility caused by the pandemic.’
