Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (LSE:RR.) shares rose 1.5% in early trading after what UBS described as a “mildly positive” first-quarter update.
The engineering group said trading had started strongly across all divisions, with engine flying hours,a key revenue driver, reaching 110% of pre-pandemic levels, slightly ahead of forecasts.
Defence also delivered a solid performance, with strong order intake, while the Power Systems business posted a book-to-bill ratio of 1.5 times, reflecting continued demand for generators and data centres.
Investors were also reassured by the company’s comments on tariffs. Although there is some direct exposure, Rolls expects mitigating actions to cancel out the impact entirely.
UBS views the group as the least affected by tariffs among its peers. The Trent 1000 blade certification remains on track, and full-year guidance has been reiterated, now factoring in tariff effects.
UBS sees the update as slightly better than expected, prompting today’s modest share price gain.
The shares, up 30% year-to-date, advanced 177.6p to 766p.