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Weir Group delivers 15% profit growth, margins top 20%, and guides to further progress in 2026. A strong year for the mining equipment specialist.
This article covers information on Weir Group PLC.
LON:WEIRThe Weir Group has posted a strong 2025, with adjusted operating profit up 15% at constant currency to £518m and margins stepping up 150bps to 20.2%. Orders grew 7% on the same basis as miners kept squeezing more from existing sites, and Q4 was notably strong with flawless execution pushing original equipment (OE) revenue sharply higher into year-end.
Management is guiding to another year of progress in 2026 – mid-single-digit organic revenue growth, around 50bps of margin expansion and free operating cash conversion in the 90-100% range. The upgraded Performance Excellence programme is now targeting £90m of cumulative savings, with the final £30m to land in 2026.
| Metric | FY 2025 | Change vs 2024 | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orders (constant currency) | £2,598m | +7% | AM +8%; OE flat overall, +6% underlying excluding large orders |
| Revenue | £2,565m | +6% constant currency; +2% reported | Book-to-bill 1.01 |
| Adjusted operating profit | £518m | +15% constant currency; +10% reported | Adjusted operating margin 20.2% (+150bps cc) |
| Adjusted EPS | 123.8p | +3% | Dividend policy unchanged |
| Free operating cash conversion | 92% | -10pp | Within 90-100% target range |
| Net debt | £1,274m | +£739m | Net debt/EBITDA 1.9x after acquisitions |
| Return on capital employed | 17.9% | -140bps | Reflects acquisition spend |
| Total dividend per share | 41.7p | +4% | Final dividend 22.1p, payable 29 May 2026 |
Aftermarket (AM) is the engine-room at Weir and it showed. AM orders rose 8% and AM revenue increased 8% as miners ran assets hard in copper and gold, especially in the Americas. Original equipment was flat year-on-year, but that masks healthier small-to-mid order momentum as customers pushed on with brownfield upgrades and debottlenecking.
The other leg is software. Micromine – acquired in April – is performing to plan with annual recurring revenue up 24% on an annualised basis, 88% total recurring revenue and 94% customer retention. High-quality software margins helped lift the Group’s blended margin above 20%.
Minerals continues to win where it counts: over 90% success in large mill circuit pump trials and a flagship order to supply the largest mill circuit pump in North America for a copper project. That installed base growth sets up future aftermarket pull-through.
Strategically, the division is tightening its grip on key markets: 159 net major digger conversions, progress in Australia buckets, and the move to acquire the remaining stake in ESEL to accelerate a go-direct model in Chile. On the digital side, ShovelMetrics payload monitoring and broader Micromine feature releases point to ongoing upsell opportunities.
Cash generation remained healthy with 92% free operating cash conversion, albeit down 10 percentage points on higher inventories to support order delivery and site rationalisation. Working capital rose to 22.4% of sales (2024: 20.7%).
Net debt increased to £1,274m after the Micromine (£624m EV), Townley (£111m EV) and Fast2Mine deals, taking net debt to EBITDA to 1.9x – in line with guidance. Management expects to drift back toward the normal 0.5-1.5x range by end-2026. The dividend is lifted 4% to 41.7p, covered 3.0x by adjusted EPS, with the final 22.1p due on 29 May 2026 to holders on 1 May 2026.
This mix should support margins sustainably above 20% from 2026, according to management, with continuous improvement embedded across supply chain, manufacturing and central functions.
Weir sees:
In short, another year of sensible, compounding improvements rather than heroics – which is exactly what long-term holders should want from an aftermarket-heavy mining supplier.
Weir is doing what high-quality industrials do in a good mining tape: protecting margins, growing the installed base and layering on software to raise the quality of earnings. The 20.2% adjusted operating margin and the upgraded £90m Performance Excellence target give credibility to management’s ambition to keep margins above 20% from 2026.
Yes, net debt is higher after a big year of M&A, and financing costs ticked up. But leverage is sensible at 1.9x, cash conversion remains robust, and the dividend is edging up with a comfortable 3.0x cover. If the 2026 guide on growth and margin expansion is met – and software keeps compounding – the equity story continues to improve.
Bottom line: a solid year operationally with tangible self-help, smart portfolio moves and a positive 2026 setup. For long-term holders seeking exposure to copper and gold production growth with a strong aftermarket tilt, this is the sort of steady execution you want to see.
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