Cohort has delivered another year of solid growth, with both revenue and profit coming in ahead of City expectations, as its defence and security technology businesses continued to win new business amid rising global defence spending.
The group reported revenue of £303m for the year to 30 April, up 12%, with adjusted operating profit of around £36m. Net margin improved to 11.9% from 10.2%.
Cohort shares rose 13% on the news.
The standout was the Communications and Intelligence division, where revenue jumped to £159m from £125.4m and margins pushed to roughly 20%.
A full-year contribution from EM Solutions drove much of the improvement. Sensors and Effectors was steadier, with revenue broadly flat at £144m and a thinner 7% margin, reflecting cautious trading on ELAC’s Italian sonar contract and the sale of SEA’s high-margin transport business last June.
All three businesses in the division traded profitably, though the board acknowledges the margin remains below its mid-term target.
Investors should be encouraged by the order book. Intake of around £313m boosted the closing order book to a record £620m, with work now stretching out to the mid-2030s. EID, MASS and EM Solutions led the charge, alongside Chess and SEA, helped by wins such as a €42.3m contract for EID to supply integrated communication systems to the Portuguese Navy.
The order book already underpins around £253m of revenue for the new financial year, or roughly 80% cover.
Andrew Thomis, Chief Executive of Cohort, said: “Cohort performed strongly in 2025/26, exceeding market expectations. Following another year of strong order intake, our closing order book has reached a new record level, and we have encouraging prospects for further orders.
“I’m particularly pleased with the strong maiden full year contribution from EM Solutions. The business has made good progress in capturing opportunities for growth and collaboration with other Cohort subsidiaries.”