Volution Group shares surge, as ventilation firm posts strong results on back of new property regulations

Volution Group shares soared on Thursday as the company reported solid growth in full-year revenues, thanks to increased demand for its building ventilation products. 

Shares in the manufacturer jumped 11.3 per cent to 374.6p by late Thursday afternoon, making it the highest riser on the FTSE 250 Index.

The Crawley-based firm revealed pre-tax profits grew by 3.4 per cent to £48.8million, while sales increased by 8.3 per cent to £156.1million for the 12 months ending July, thanks primarily to a healthy performance in the UK.

Trade was uplifted by more robust demand in the residential repair, maintenance and improvement market, amid growing awareness of the health risks related to mould and condensation.

Regulations introduced in June 2022 requiring newly constructed buildings to have smaller carbon footprints have provided a boost for Volution’s energy-efficient ventilation systems. 

Just over a year later, the Social Housing Act received royal assent, giving regulators greater powers to ensure landlords address unsafe conditions in properties.

Under the new law, landlords must fix reported hazards within a strict time frame or rehouse tenants in alternative premises if the home cannot be made safe.

Volution noted that the law led to a ‘sharp increase’ in orders of energy-efficient ventilation products in the second half of the last financial year. 

In addition, the firm said the importance of good ventilation had been made ‘more pressing’ by the ‘unintended consequence’ of some Britons turning down their thermostats too much in response to soaring energy prices.

Because cool air retains greater moisture, homes lacking sufficient heating are far more likely to be affected by mould and condensation.

Outside the UK, Volution saw sales grow by 12.7 per cent to £75.4million across Central Europe, supported by acquisitions of VMI in France, I-Venta, and Energy Recovery Industries, a major supplier of aluminium heat exchanger cells.

This offset declining organic revenue in the Nordics region, where Volution was impacted by large-scale customer destocking.

The company expects sales to continue expanding despite the current cost-of-living crisis and rising mortgage rates impacting housebuilding levels.

Ronnie George, Volution’s chief executive, said: ‘Whilst we are mindful of the impact of higher interest rates on consumer confidence and new build construction, the regulatory changes in our local markets continue to drive demand for our innovative and well-positioned low carbon product technologies.’