New senior management team appointed during the period
Important progress made in Performance Recovery Programme
Restructuring costs of approximately £15 million expected, delivering annual savings of approximately £10 million predominantly arising from FY2014, underpinning FY2014 profitability and providing greater resilience in the medium term
Our markets are likely to remain challenging into 2014, particularly in the US
Order book of £701.1 million (October 2012: £760.9 million), of which £287.6 million is deliverable in FY2013
Dividend
The Board has declared an interim dividend of 3.4p per ordinary share (2012: 5.3p). The dividend is three times covered by underlying earnings per share, in line with the policy detailed in the 2012 Annual Report and Accounts. The interim dividend will be paid on 15 August 2013 to shareholders on the register at 26 July 2013.
Mark Papworth, Chemring Group Chief Executive, commented:
"The Group has made good progress in the first half. The quality of our operations is improving, and while there is still much to do, we are confident that the Group's performance is heading in the right direction. However, visibility generally, and the limited level of detail on the extent and nature of cuts to US defence spending in particular, makes forecasting increasingly difficult. For the current financial year, the Board's outlook is towards the lower end of expectations.
Looking ahead, significant progress has been made in our Performance Recovery Programme announced in January 2013. These actions are expected to underpin 2014 profitability, drive improvements in operational performance, and provide greater resilience in current challenging markets."
