Hunting (LSE:HTG), the precision engineering group, reported first-half revenue down 6% to $497m and EBITDA down 12% to $62.1m, as the absence of prior-year Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) orders and softer Advanced Manufacturing activity offset growth elsewhere.
KOC has now indicated it will re-run the OCTG tender originally issued in April, with an accelerated process expected in the third quarter and results due within a month of reissue, pushing any new contracts into 2027 recognition.
The delay will cut roughly $10m from 2026 EBITDA, taking full-year guidance to $138-141m, slightly below the previous range, and could shave up to $10m from current 2027 consensus of $165m, according to Bloomberg data cited by the company.
"The strong margins delivered from our Subsea product group... are strengthening the quality of our earnings into the long-term, a key deliverable of our 2030 strategic ambition," said chief executive Jim Johnson, who is retiring and being replaced through an ongoing search.
Perforating Systems delivered record international sales, with share gains in North America and growth in Australia, Argentina, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia.
Subsea Technologies benefited from order momentum and a contribution from Flexible Engineered Solutions, acquired in June 2025, while Hunting secured $63.5m in titanium stress joint orders from ExxonMobil in Guyana, deliverable by 2027.
The board declared an interim dividend of 7.0 cents, up 13% year-on-year, and reaffirmed plans for 13% annual dividend growth through the decade.
Working capital investment of $58m in H1 is expected to unwind in the second half, with year-end cash projected at $50-60m.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Hunting cut its 2026 EBITDA guidance to $138–141m after Kuwait Oil Company delayed its OCTG tender re-run into Q3, pushing roughly $10m of earnings recognition into 2027. The delay is a concrete headwind: H1 revenue fell 6% and EBITDA fell 12%, with the Kuwait order absence cited as a key driver, and the company now flags potential downside to 2027 consensus as well.
The Kuwait tender slip is a near-term earnings miss, not a demand destruction signal—the contract is expected to land, just later. However, the 2026 guidance cut and the risk to 2027 consensus narrow near-term visibility. Offsetting factors include working capital of circa $394m at 30 June expected to unwind in H2, and order momentum in Subsea and Perforating Systems, but the timing uncertainty on a material contract undermines confidence in the guidance range.
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