24th Apr 2018 09:45
LONDON (Alliance News) - Breedon Group PLC reiterated Tuesday that despite challenging weather impacting the UK construction industry so far in 2018, it has seen an improvement in trading and thus expects full-year results in line with expectations as early integration of its recent acquisition was "extremely encouraging."
"Although forecasters are expecting this year to be challenging for our industry, the underlying outlook remains positive," Breedon Chairman Peter Tom said. "Construction output is forecast to grow by 4.8% in the UK and by 28% in the Republic of Ireland over the next three years. Growth is expected to be driven primarily by housing and infrastructure, which together account for the majority of our end-use markets."
Tom - speaking at Breedon's annual general meeting later on Tuesday - will reiterate that although "severe" weather in the UK over the first quarter had impacted the phasing of some work, an improvement has been seen since then which they anticipate to continue. As such, Breedon retains its full-year expectations.
Earlier in April, Breedon acquired Northern Irish rival Lagan Group (Holdings) Ltd for GBP455 million in cash.
"We are now in the early stages of integrating Lagan Group, our largest acquisition to date," Tom added. "Our initial experience has been extremely encouraging and it is particularly pleasing to be working with like-minded professionals who share our vision for the future of our business, particularly our ambition to be the safest and most profitable company in our respective markets."
Breedon will report its interim results on September 5.
Shares in Breedon were 1.0% lower at 83.25 pence on Tuesday.
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