Rotork plc (LON:ROR) has announced its 2026 interim results
Growth+ execution drives resilient H1 performance; further progress expected in 2026
| Adjusted highlights | H1 2026 | H1 2025 | Change | OCC change2 |
| Order intake | £371.8m | £391.1m | -4.9% | -4.0% |
| Revenue | £367.2m | £367.3m | 0.0% | +1.3% |
| Adjusted1 operating profit | £82.2m | £80.8m | +1.7% | +4.1% |
| Adjusted1 operating margin | 22.4% | 22.0% | +40bps | +60bps |
| Adjusted1 basic earnings per share | 7.4p | 7.1p | +4.2% | |
| Cash conversion3 | 79% | 89% | ||
| Reported highlights | H1 2026 | H1 2025 | Change | |
| Revenue | £367.2m | £367.3m | 0.0% | |
| Operating profit | £72.0m | £64.7m | +11.3% | |
| Operating margin | 19.6% | 17.6% | +200bps | |
| Profit before tax | £71.4m | £65.1m | +9.7% | |
| Basic earnings per share | 6.7p | 5.7p | +17.5% | |
| Interim dividend | 3.00p | 2.95p | +1.7% |
Summary
· Strong order intake in CPI and Water & Power reflected Growth+ momentum and helped partially offset the impact of Middle East-related disruption in Oil & Gas
· Growth+ initiatives continued to enhance revenue quality, with Target Segment revenue growth of +10% OCC and Service increasing to 24% of revenue (H1 2025: 23%)
· Adjusted operating margin expanded 60bps OCC year-on-year to 22.4%, driven by operating leverage, disciplined cost management and favourable mix
· ROCE of 36.5% remained at peer-leading levels (H1 2025: 37.0%), underpinned by strong margins and our asset-light manufacturing model
· Our robust balance sheet continues to support disciplined capital allocation, including the £40m buyback completed in H1 and a newly declared 3.00p interim dividend
· We continue to expect further progress on an OCC basis for the Group in 2026
Proposed cash offer by ABB
· The Board has agreed the terms of ABB’s recommended cash acquisition of the Group at an offer value of 506 pence per share (inclusive of the 3.00p interim dividend above)
· The acquisition is expected to complete in H1 2027, subject to shareholder and court approval
Kiet Huynh, Chief Executive Officer, commenting on the results, said:
“Rotork delivered a robust first half performance, demonstrating the strength of our portfolio and the continued benefits of the Growth+ strategy. I would like to thank all my colleagues for their hard work and dedication in driving continued progress across the Group.
Strong growth in Chemical, Process & Industrial (CPI) and Water & Power helped offset the impact of the Middle East conflict and ongoing customer capex discipline in Oil & Gas. Group profitability continued to improve and ROCE remained at a high level despite the mixed operating environment. This performance reflects our greater exposure to faster growing Target Segments, our mission-critical product positions, asset-light business model and growth of Service in our revenue mix. We continued to deploy capital in line with our disciplined allocation framework, investing organically to support future growth while returning a further £40m to shareholders through share buybacks.
Looking ahead, we continue to expect further progress on an OCC basis for the Group in 2026. Our expectations for Water & Power remain unchanged, with strong order momentum expected to underpin performance in H2. While recovery in Oil & Gas is now expected to be more gradual, with full year divisional revenue expected to be slightly lower year-on-year, we now anticipate stronger growth in CPI. We remain focused on attractive end markets supported by structural tailwinds including automation, electrification and digitalisation. Combined with the benefits of our Growth+ strategy, this gives us confidence in our ability to deliver mid to high single-digit revenue growth and adjusted operating profit margins in the mid-twenties over time.”
Recommended cash acquisition of Rotork by ABB
On 16 July 2026, the boards of directors of ABB Ltd (‘ABB’) and Rotork announced that they had reached agreement on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition by ABB through its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, ABB Automation Holding UK Limited, of the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of Rotork (the ‘Acquisition’).
Under the terms of the Acquisition, each Rotork shareholder will be entitled to receive 506 pence for each Rotork share to be paid by ABB, comprising 503 pence in cash and an interim dividend of 3 pence. It is intended that the Acquisition will be implemented by way of a Court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006.
In order to approve the terms of the Acquisition, the required majority of Scheme Shareholders will need to vote in favour of the resolution to be proposed at the Court Meeting and the required majority of Rotork Shareholders will need to vote in favour of the resolution(s) to be proposed at the General Meeting.
The Acquisition is also subject to the terms and conditions set out in the announcement on 16 July 2026 and to the full terms and conditions which will be set out in the scheme document in due course, including the receipt of certain antitrust and foreign investment approvals. The Acquisition is expected to complete in the first half of 2027, subject to the satisfaction or (where applicable) waiver of all relevant conditions.
1 Adjusted figures exclude the amortisation of acquired intangible assets and other adjustments (see note 2).
2 Organic constant currency (‘OCC’) results adjust for currency movements, acquisitions and disposals. The prior period results are translated at the current period average exchange rates.
3 Adjusted figures, OCC figures, cash conversion and ROCE are alternative performance measures and are used consistently throughout these results. They are defined in full and reconciled to the reported measures in note 2.
4 Book-to-bill ratio is calculated as orders received in the period divided by revenue in the period.
