3rd Jun 2014 11:25
LONDON (Alliance News) - Fulcrum Utility Services Ltd Tuesday posted a widened pretax loss for the year to end-March, hit by restructuring costs and reduced revenues.
Fulcrum provides gas connections and independent gas transportation services.
The company posted a pretax loss of GBP4.5 million, widened from a restated loss of GBP1.0 million in the previous year, as revenue declined slightly to GBP38.3 million from GBP38.9 million, but sales costs and administrative expenses rose and it posted restructuring and redundancy costs of GBP3.7 million.
Revenues were hit by the sale of some of its domestic pipeline assets in October 2013 for GBP6.3 million, which had contributed GBP500,000 to revenues in the previous year.
In the previous year the company saw a one-off release of GBP1.1 million of provisions associated with the change in framework contractors, and GBP600,000 in other provisions. Additionally, a number of higher profit contracts did not recur.
As a result, the company's gross margin declined to 24.8% from 31.6%.
Fulcrum said it had made substantial progress in reducing its cost base, scaling back its senior management team, and reviewing other costs. The company has reduced its overheads by GBP3.0 million during the last year, it said.
The company said it entered the 2014/2015 year with a solid order book, and believes that its restructuring will produce a business model where it can made a decent profit at its current level of turnover. If it can achieve sales growth beyond this, Fulcrum said, it will produce extra gross margin with a minimal increase in overheads.
Fulcrum's key focus for the year will be delivering more major projects, taking advantage of the reinvigorated house building market, expanding its multi-utility offering and developing its web-based sales channel, it said.
Shares in Fulcrum were trading down 1.8% at 7.36 pence Tuesday morning.
By Hana Stewart-Smith; [email protected]; @HanaSSAllNews
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