20th Sep 2018 09:12
LONDON (Alliance News) - Kier Group PLC on Thursday said it plans to simplify its operations following a profit growth in its recently ended financial year, helped by new projects and contract wins.
The infrastructure services company said pretax profit was GBP106.2 million, swinging from a loss of GBP14.2 million a year earlier as revenue improved by 5% to GBP4.5 billion from GBP4.3 billion.
This was due to substantially reduced one off costs to GBP30.7 million from GBP140.3 million the prior year, when the group conducted a portfolio simplification, involving the closure of its Hong Kong and Caribbean operations.
On an adjusted basis, pretax profit rose by 9.0% to GBP136.9 million from GBP126.1 million the prior year.
Kier declared a full-year dividend of 69.0 pence per share, up 2% from 67.5p paid the year before.
Property revenue increased 20% to GBP218 million as the company identified a number of development opportunities following a short-term softening of the property market post the EU Referendum vote in June 2016.
The company said its Construction division's performance was underpinned by a strong fourth quarter, resulting in a record order book of GBP5.0 billion. Revenue was up 2% to GBP2.05 billion.
Meanwhile, in the Services division there were strong contributions from the Highways and Utilities businesses resulting in an order book of GBP5.2 billion. Services revenue increased 10% to GBP1.85 billion.
Following the liquidation of construction services company Carillion, Kier acquired the share of the HS2 project and of Highways England's Smart Motorways programme. As a result, over 150 employees transferred into Kier to continue the smooth delivery of services under these projects.
In June, Kier launched the Future Proofing programme, focused on simplifying and streamlining its operations and enabling the group to be more responsive to client needs. The company targets to secure between GBP30 million to GBP50 million of proceeds from the disposal of non-core businesses in the financial 2020.
"I am pleased to report a good set of results with all divisions performing well," said Chief Executive Haydn Mursell.
"The Future Proofing Kier programme positions the group well for an improvement in operating margins and higher cash generation, culminating in a net cash position for financial 2021," added Mursell.
Shares in Kier were trading up 6.5% early on Thursday at 1,107.42 pence each.
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