Bodycote to miss forecasts if demand stays weak

LONDON (Reuters) - Engineer Bodycote (BOY.L) expects 2009 earnings to miss analysts' consensus forecast if demand in its main car, aerospace and oil and gas markets remains at current depressed levels, it said on Friday.

The group, whose activities include heat-treating jet engine turbine blades and other parts for plane and car makers, said revenue from continuing operations dropped 31 percent at constant currencies in the six months to June 30 and forecast a small first-half operating loss before one-off items.

"As a consequence of our short order book and continuing uncertainty in market conditions, visibility is very limited, but if demand remains at its current depressed levels, the board would anticipate the outcome for 2009 being materially below recent market EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) consensus (forecast)," it said in a trading update.

Analysts' latest consensus forecast was 24 million pounds, it added.

Bodycote, which said in February it was cutting about 1,500 jobs and closing or combining 31 sites to save 18 million pounds a year, said cost savings would help as the year progresses.

There had been a modest improvement in demand from the car industry from the very depressed levels seen in the early part of the year, but customer summer shutdowns were likely to be longer than those of last year, it said.

Demand from the aerospace and oil and gas industries continued to weaken, it added.

As at June 30, net debt was 89 million pounds.

Bodycote shares have underperformed the UK engineering sector, .FTASX2750 by 10 percent over the past year. They closed at 125.25 pence on Thursday, valuing the business at about 226 million pounds.

(Reporting by Mark Potter, editing by Will Waterman)