Shearwater and NCC shares plunge after profit warnings

SHARES in two Bloomsbury-based cybersecurity firms plummeted this morning as both issued profit warnings, blaming the slowdown in the wider tech sector for lower sales.

NCC Group shares were down almost 50% as it revealed its profit for the year to 31 May is now expected to be £28 million — 40% lower than previously thought.

Meanwhile, the Shearwater Group now expects essentially no profit for the year to 31 March, with revenue to come in 25% below the prior year. Its shares fell by almost 40%. The firm added that it would “take steps to address underperforming areas in the group”.

NCC’s CEO Mike Maddison said its profit warning will “reinforce the rationale” for layoffs that were announced last month.

Both companies put the declines down to the wider issues in the tech sector, which led to their customers reducing or delaying spending on cybersecurity projects.

The announcements had an effect on other listed businesses in the sector, with Darktrace shares down by 3% and Crossword Cybersecurity down 5%.