Profit, revenue rise at Kingspan

Insulation and building materials specialist Kingspan said profit and revenue rose in the first half of the year, but warned the pace of growth in the business would likely ease in the second half of the year.

The company said revenue rose 32 per cent in the six months to June 30th to €736 million, helped by the acquisition of CRH's insulation business. Excluding the impact of that purchase, revenue was up 16 per cent.

Trading profit rose 24 per cent to €44.2 million for the period, an increase of 24 per cent overall. Group trading margin was 6 per cent, in line with full year 2010.

"During the first half of 2011, penetration growth, rising refurbishment activity and geographic expansion all combined to drive the business forward," Kingspan said in a statement.

"The pace of growth, however, eased during quarter two and is likely to ease further in the second half reflecting the limited evidence to date of a sustained economic recovery in the group's key markets."

Kingspan said the robust start to the year was helped by more favourable weather conditions compared to the same period in 2010, but noted momentum eased throughout the industry during the second quarter.

Chief executive Gene Murtagh said strong organic growth complemented the group's recent acquisition.

"Kingspan continues to outperform both the market and the general macro environment with our range of high performance solutions although we remain very mindful in the period ahead of renewed global uncertainties and their possible impacts," he said.