Sharks circle Kier Group despite construction giant’s ‘future-proofing’ plans November 19, 2018 Five funds have raised their bets against Kier Group so far this month, as traders predict the construction giant will be the next big outsourcer to have its shares tumble. Funds including Blackrock and George Soros-backed SFM UK have raised their short positions in Kier recently, even after the company unveiled a plan in late September [...]
The public still doesn’t understand audit – here’s why that matters November 19, 2018 A new study demonstrates the continued reality of the expectation gap – the term used within the audit sector to denote the difference between what the public think auditors’ responsibilities are, and what auditors themselves believe their responsibilities are. Only a quarter of the public understand what an audit consists of, but nearly half think auditors [...]
British builder Kier Group confident of meeting full-year expectations with results weighted towards second-half of financial year November 16, 2018 Kier Group has announced that it is confident of meeting its full-year expectations ahead of its AGM today, with the full-year results being weighted towards the second half of the financial year. The FTSE 250 listed company have said it will continue to focus on operational cash generation and reducing net debt as part of their Future Proofing Kier (FPK) [...]
Asset managers back Big Four audit firms in competition watchdog consultation November 15, 2018 Investment management firms have called on the competition watchdog to ensure the quality of audit is not affected as it probes the dominance of the so-called Big Four firms. In a response to the Competition and Markets Authority Standard Life said the division of the dominant audit firms – PwC, Deloitte, KPMG and EY – [...]
Debate: Following a share price dive, should we be worried about Interserve’s future? November 15, 2018 Debate: Following a share price dive, should we be worried about Interserve’s future? Yes – John Tizard is an independent strategic adviser. Interserve’s story seems to have some parallels with Carillion. Construction firms appear to find public service outsourcing challenging, with problems caused by clashes in culture and different expectations for margins. Contracts must be [...]
Market jitters post-Carillion collapse hit Interserve shares November 14, 2018 Market jitters over the stability of outsourcing firms following the high-profile collapse of Carillion sent Interserve’s share price plummeting this week. The company’s share price was volatile today after falling to the lowest level in more than 30 years on Monday following a statement from joint venture partner Renewi which revealed that Interserve had experienced [...]
Here are the six (yes, six) reviews the audit sector is currently facing November 14, 2018 As 2018 continues to be the annus horribilis of audit, bean counters are finding that sector reviews are, as the saying goes, like buses. With news this week that MPs are going to launch their own super-inquiry, the sector now faces six reviews. If that seems like more than you’ve got to grips with, here’s a [...]
The pressure is on to fix the broken audit market November 14, 2018 Accountancy may be “an art, not a science”, but there needs to be less “Jackson Pollock”. That’s according to the Labour MP Rachel Reeves, chair of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee, who has made it her mission to fix the broken audit market. The Big Four firms (PwC, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG) are [...]
Interserve shares collapse by another 20 per cent after hitting 30-year low November 13, 2018 Shares in outsourcing firm Interserve have recovered slightly after a second day of turmoil which saw the price plummet by more than 20 per cent. The price was down to 31.19p this afternoon, from opening at 40.19p, after hitting a 30-year low yesterday. Shares had recovered to 38p after the company issued a statement insisting that its [...]
Beleaguered audit watchdog boss may be forced out within weeks, says senior MP November 13, 2018 Stephen Haddrill, the beleaguered boss of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) may be forced to resign within weeks after a report into the widely-criticised audit sector regulator is released, a top Labour MP has said. Rachel Reeves, chair of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Select Committee, said Haddrill, who has announced his intention [...]