Shares in Galliford Try Holdings PLC (LSE:GFRD) rose 4% to 206p on Tuesday as it said full-year profits are expected to be at the top end of City forecasts and that last year's contract-signing delays are now easing.
The construction group, which recently promised shareholders a 12p-a-share special dividend after settling a long-running dispute, said a strong performance across all operations had resulted in increased revenue and profit during the year to end-June.
With final results due to be published in September, it said pre-exceptional profit before tax is expected to be at the upper end of current analyst forecasts, which range from £22.1mln to £23.3mln.
Both supply shortages and inflation were said to be subsiding.
A positive impact is being seen in the Environment sector as three recent acquisitions focused on the water industry were all said to have been successfully integrated, while group-wide plans for reducing Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions were recently validated under the UN-backed Science Based Targets initiative.
Cash of £220mln stood in the bank at year-end, up from £219mln a year ago, and chief executive Bill Hocking said the balance sheet is an “important differentiator for our clients and suppliers”, helping the company win a number of major contracts in the past year.
Since January, the group has been successful in winning a number of key projects and places on major frameworks, including the £5.1bn defence estate optimisation portfolio, the £4.5bn southern construction framework, the £2.5bn Ministry of Justice constructor services framework, the £600mln Southern Water AMP8 framework, plus road projects near Carlisle and Melton Mowbray, and a £75mln Brent Cross residential project.
The order book has strengthened to £3.7bn from £3.4bn a year ago, with 92% of revenue for the new financial year secured.