15th Apr 2009 07:00
Trading Update
WS Atkins plc ("Atkins" or "the Group"), the design and engineering consultancy group, today provides an update on trading for the year ended 31 March 2009 in advance of its preliminary results announcement on 17 June 2009.
Overall, the Group has continued to perform well. Profit before tax, after taking account of redundancy costs, for the year ended 31 March 2009 is anticipated to be in line with current market expectations.
As outlined in our Q3 Interim Management Statement, the majority of our markets remain stable across the Group. Since February, there have been no signs of a recovery in the UK building market and, while we are still winning work in the Middle East, confidence across the region has yet to return. Principally in response to the outlook in these markets, in the last quarter of the financial year the Group made redundancies of approximately 1,200 staff. The cost of these redundancies is estimated to be around £10 million. The IAS 19 pension deficit (after tax) has increased to approximately £215 million (31 March 2008: £154 million) principally as a result of lower asset prices. Cash collection has become more difficult, especially in the Middle East where there has been a worsening of approximately £25 million in the past three months. We expect that cash collection will remain challenging for at least the next few months. Despite this, the Group's cash generation in the last quarter has remained very strong with net funds at 31 March 2009 expected to be over £225 million, after taking account of a significant foreign exchange benefit.
Outlook
The Group's order book remains solid and we are confident that the Group is well placed to address the challenges in the year ahead.
Ends
Enquiries
Robert MacLeod +44 (0)1372 726140
Group finance director
Sara Lipscombe
Group communications director +44 (0)1372 726140
Notes to editors
1. Cautionary statement
This announcement may contain indications of likely future developments and other forward-looking statements that are subject to risk factors associated with, among other things, the economic and business circumstances occurring from time to time in the countries, sectors and business segments in which the Group operates. These and other factors could adversely affect the Group's results, strategy and prospects. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. They relate to events and/or depend on circumstances in the future which could cause actual results and outcomes to differ materially from those currently anticipated. No obligation is assumed to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
2. Analyst conference call
There will be a conference call for analysts at 0830 today. Details are available from Aidan Holloway at Smithfield (+44 (0)20 7903 0602).
3. Atkins
Atkins (www.atkinsglobal.com) is a multinational engineering and design consultancy, providing expertise to help resolve complex challenges presented by the built and natural environment. Atkins is the largest multidisciplinary consultancy in Europe, the largest engineering consultancy in both the UK and the Middle East, and the UK's second largest architecture firm.
Atkins was named among the 20 Best Big Companies to Work For 2009 by The Sunday Times; The Times Top 100 Graduate Employers 2008; and The Times Top 50 Companies Where Women Want to Work 2008. The company was construction sector winner for the third consecutive year in the Target National Graduate Recruitment Awards 2008.
Atkins is the official engineering design services provider for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
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