ANALYST VIEWS: ARE THERE WEAKNESSES IN WS ATKINS’ RESULTS?
CHRISTOPHER BAMBERRY | PEEL HUNT
Atkins delivered a strong set of prelims, five per cent ahead of our expectations, because of the outperformance of the Middle East business. Although a well managed market leader, Atkins is over 50 per cent exposed to the UK, which will in our opinion impede growth over the next two years.
GRAHAM BROWN | EVOLUTION SECURITIES
Its underlying results show profit before tax growth of 9.4 per cent and revenue growth of 13 per cent – but these include the PBSJ acquisition. In effect, the core business has contracted by four per cent in revenue terms with a smaller fall in pre-tax profit. We see better value elsewhere.
MICHAEL PARKINSON | BREWIN DOLPHIN
Final results are ahead of expectations. The principal reason for outperformance versus our estimates looks to be the Middle East business, where profits increased by 70 per cent. We expect to make small upgrades to our forecasts to include the recent Poyry acquisition and better margins at PBSJ.