Ibstock PLC (LSE:IBST), the clay bricks and concrete products manufacturer, said trading exceeded the company’s expectations in the third quarter on the back of robust demand and it now believes its full-year results will beat its previous forecasts.
"Our strong trading in the first half of the year continued through the third quarter, supported by robust demand across our end markets,” Ibstock’s chief executive officer Joe Hudson said in a statement.
"Whilst we remain mindful of the elevated macroeconomic uncertainty, we now anticipate performance for the 2022 year to be above our previous expectations," he added.
Sales volumes in the clay business in the third quarter to end-September were marginally above the comparative the year before, Ibstock said, noting that its energy requirements are well covered for 2022 and that it has cover for 2023 approaching 50% of projected network needs.
The strategic growth investments at its Atlas and Aldridge factories are progressing well and are on track to start commissioning from the end of 2023. The facilities will produce the UK's first net-zero carbon brick, the company added.
In the concrete division, third-quarter performance was in line with expectations. Volumes of walling stone were modestly above last year, offset by slightly lower floor beam volumes.
Roof tile output, which was impacted by operational challenges in the first half, improved in the third quarter with sequential quarterly margin progression.