Cobham, the UK aerospace and defence manufacturer that recently joined the FTSE 100, reported a 42 per cent surge in orders, driven by strong demand from military and national security markets.

The Dorset-based company predicted on Thursday that it would beat its own revenue growth targets for the full year, after reporting a 24 per cent rise in underlying profits to £106.6m for the six months to June. Pre-tax profits rose to £84m (£68m).

The company said its orders stood at £2.2bn at the end of June. Cobham, the world’s largest manufacturer of mid-air refuelling rigs for aircraft, said that included about £150m relating to a programme to provide a fleet of refuelling tankers to the Royal Air Force. The shares rose 5p to 222¼p.

Allan Cook, chief executive, called the strong order book “a fantastic result”. He expected growth to continue to come from the US, which represents about half of Cobham’s sales, as well as India, parts of the Middle East and South Korea in the long-term. Sales for the half year rose 28 per cent to £632m. Earnings per share advanced from 4.43p to 5.49p.

Mr Cook said the company had spent about $1.1bn (£563m) on five acquisitions in the past six months and predicted more deals. The company still has $600m available for acquisitions. “The pipeline is as busy as ever,” he said.

The company is tendering for more contracts, including one to provide a new generation of vehicle intercom systems for the US Army.

Cobham is paying an interim dividend of 1.345p, up from 1.22p last time.

FT Comment

Cobham delivered a solid set of results, ahead of market expectations. Winning the recently re-opened competition to supply refuelling tankers to the US air force, together with prime contractors Northrop Grumman and EADS, would bring more benefits, although the fact that Boeing managed to get that competition reopened means it is not guaranteed. The shares trade on a multiple of about 13 times 2009 earnings, a slight premium to the sector. Given the bullish outlook and Cobham’s position as a supplier of high-end technologies to the defence sector, that looks justified.