Galliford Try swings into red after snapping up water firm as it hails ‘good progress’
Construction firm Galliford Try has dropped into the red during the first half of the year, following its acquisition of a water firm.
Shares in the Uxbridge-based company were down slightly in Thursday morning trading after it reported a pre-tax loss of £2.6m. This was compared to a £3.9m profit last year.
However, revenue soared 10 per cent to £594m in the six months ended 31 December. This was compared to £542m in the first half of 2021.
The company acquired nmcn’s water business for £6.3m and implemented of cloud-based ERP systems worth £3.4m. Before these exceptional costs, profit before tax increased to £7.1m, compared to £4.1m in the first half of 2021.
Bill Hocking, chief executive, said: “The group has continued to perform well in the first half of the financial year, successfully managing industry-wide material shortages and inflation. I am pleased to report that we are making good progress against our sustainable growth strategy, and our target of 3% divisional operating margin across building and infrastructure.
“I am excited about the future given our excellent people, strong balance sheet, market leading sector positions, investment in supplier relationships and high-quality order book. The group continues to trade well and is well placed to continue to deliver strong performance and long-term sustainable value for all our stakeholders.”