Peek Plc seems to have let its exceptionally good end of year results go to its head as it claims that it is ready for the human race’s redirection of its instinctive urge for combat away from the battlefield to the market place. Still pre-tax profits up 233% to UKP8.4m on turnover up 205% to […]
Peek Plc seems to have let its exceptionally good end of year results go to its head as it claims that it is ready for the human race’s redirection of its instinctive urge for combat away from the battlefield to the market place. Still pre-tax profits up 233% to UKP8.4m on turnover up 205% to UKP44.9m perhaps warrant enough bonhomie to believe the machinations of the super powers on defence. Or maybe the company is hinting that it wants to get rid of its military market sector. Anyway, the year found Peek (having integrated Dubilier which it acquired in June) successfully concentrating its resources in three key product areas: industrial automation, instrumentation and connectors. The last division has been somewhat eclipsed by the performances of the other two but nevertheless turned in positive organic growth over the year. The instrumentation division saw the successful integration of Polysonics Inc and the company says that it is looking for new technologies to drive the measurement and control industries in which it operates. The most profitable business, however, came from industrial automation where the hand-held Husky performed well, securing significant orders from both the commercial and military sectors, although the traffics products division in the US was weak. The traffic management division, however, has been receiving a lot of the company’s attention with the recently announced acquisitions of Polytechnic Electronics and Transyt Corp. Finally, Peek has sold Blundells as it did not meet its financial targets. All in all, Peek is facing the future with (possibly over-)optimistic confidence.
