Galliford Try profit ‘at upper end’ as contract delays ease

Contractor Galliford Try said it is on course to report pre-tax profit for the year to 30 June at the upper end of analyst forecasts after delays in awarding public sector contracts eased in the last six months.

The firm said it had made good progress on integrating acquisitions, including the purchase of collapsed contractor NMCN’s water business, and had benefited from a £26m cash settlement of a long-running legal dispute.

Analysts have forecast the firm to report pre-tax profit of between £22.1m and £23.3m for the financial year to end of June.

The firm said it had upped its order book to £3.7bn, from £3.4bn a year ago, and reported average month-end cash of circa £135m, down on the £174m for the 2022 financial year.

It said the resolution of the long-running dispute would result in the payment of a special 12p per share dividend to shareholders, and heralded its progresses, which it said had been achieved against “a backdrop of macroeconomic challenges”.

However, the firm said that the “delays in signing new contracts” experienced during “calendar year 2022” were now “easing”. Recent contract wins highlighted by the firm include the £5.1bn Defence Estate Optimisation Portfolio, the £4.5bn Southern Construction Framework, the £2.5bn Ministry of Justice Constructor Services Framework and the £600m Southern Water AMP8 Framework.

The contractor said the easing of the delays in awarding contracts had contributed to a “very strong orderbook at 30 June 2023”.

Bill Hocking, chief executive, said: “The group expects to report another year of strong performance across all its operations with increased revenue and profit before tax and we continue to progress our sustainable growth strategy, supporting our financial targets to 2026.

“We are excited about the new financial year and the opportunity to deliver further strong future performance and long-term sustainable value for all stakeholders.”