A mild profit warning from James Fisher & Sons PLC (LON:FSJ) proved to be a storm in a teacup for the shipping broker's shares sitting a bit low in the water.
In a trading update covering the third quarter of the calendar year, the board advised that profit before tax for the whole of 2019 is expected to be ahead of last year's £56.1mln but a bit below previous expectations.
The trends seen in the first half of the year in the group's Offshore Oil and Tankships divisions continued into the third quarter, with trading well ahead of the prior year, reflecting improved market conditions in the oil & gas sector and the commencement of a new contract to support the Royal Navy's refuelling requirements in Tankships.
The Specialist Technical division continued to perform broadly in line with a strong prior year comparative, the company added.
After a slow start to the year, the performance of the Marine Support division picked up in the third quarter but a slower than anticipated return from the investments made in the first half of 2019 resulted in a lower financial performance than planned in the third quarter.
As for what little remains of this year, the group anticipates “continued good performance” in its Offshore Oil and Tankships divisions while the Specialist Technical arm is expected to perform broadly in line with the previous year and Marine Support is expected to recover from its sluggish performance in the third quarter.
Shares in James Fisher initially dived to 1,812p from 1,930p overnight before recovering to 1,928p, down 2p on the morning.