Dialight, the London-listed maker of industrial LED lighting, has reported a sharp recovery in profits for the first half of its financial year, with operating profit rising to $14.9 million from $5.9 million a year earlier, the company said on Tuesday, 10 November 2026.

The group, listed on the London Stock Exchange, published unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 September 2026. Revenue rose 9.3% to $94.4 million from $86.4 million, and profit before tax increased to $14.2 million from $4.5 million. Profit for the period was $10.1 million, up from $2.7 million.

Margins recover sharply

The improvement was driven by much stronger margins. Gross margin rose to 48.7% from 35.3% a year earlier, a gain of 1,340 basis points, and underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation doubled to $19.0 million. The group said it had achieved all of its financial performance goals for the first half, including underlying revenue growth of 19.8% once the Traffic business disposed of last year is excluded, an EBITDA margin of 20.1% and a return on sales of 15.8%.

Lighting, the larger division, generated revenue of $69.1 million, up 14.4% from $60.4 million, helped by improved pricing discipline and stronger sales resources. The Components division reported revenue of $25.3 million, against $26.0 million a year earlier, but underlying revenue grew 37.5% as the group focused on its opto-electronic product line.

Back to net cash

Dialight also returned to a positive net cash position, ending September with net cash of $4.5 million, compared with net bank debt of $10.2 million a year earlier and $1.9 million at 31 March 2026. The group said the strong first half left operating profit well ahead of the underlying $10.3 million it made in the whole of the last full financial year.

The board said it expects continued sales growth in the second half, with gross margin meeting its upgraded guidance and strong profit growth on the second half of last year. It has previously said full-year profit for the year ending 31 March 2027 should be significantly ahead of previous expectations. Analyst forecasts cited in the results point to full-year profit before tax of $17.3 million, according to Investec Research.

Dialight, which makes sustainable LED lighting for industrial applications and opto-electronic components, operates in the UK, the US, Mexico, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and Dubai. Its full-year results for the year ending 31 March 2027 are due in June 2027.

Sources: ADVFN (London Stock Exchange RNS) and Edison Group.