Shares in Kier Group plc (LON:KIE) rose more than 3% after the company boosted annual profits, slashed its debt and pension deficit and hiked its dividend.
The stock gained 45p to 1325p as Kier said underlying profit from operations increased 44% to £150mln, including a full-year contribution from its £265mln acquisition of support services group Mouchel.
It cut net debt to £99mln from £141mln a year ago and reduced its pension deficit to £72mln from £123mln last time.
Kier also increased its full-year dividend per share by 17% to 64.5p, which it said reflected the board's confidence in the business.
In common with rivals, the company is increasingly involved in the support services market, which now provides half its profit.
However, the order book stood at £8.7bn versus £9.3bn last time.
Chief executive Haydn Mursell said: "Having completed the integration of Mouchel, we are well progressed with the simplification of our portfolio of businesses and are focused on capitalising on the growth opportunities available.
"We remain confident of achieving our goal of double-digit profit growth on average each year to 2020."