Interim financial results released this morning (16 August) show that group turnover grew by 9 per cent year on year to reach £4.53bn. Pre-tax profit totalled £97m for the six months ending 30 June, marking a 16.8 per cent increase on the £83m that Balfour Beatty posted in its 2022 interims.
The group’s UK construction activities stood out in the latest results with revenue of £1.52bn from 1 January to 30 June – a year-on-year increase of 22.6 per cent.
Pre-tax profit increased by two-thirds to £30m, and the profit margin was 2 per cent, up from 1.5 per cent in the first half of 2022.
In contrast, the group’s US construction arm saw a £30m decrease in revenue, with pre-tax profit and margin unchanged at £21m and 1.2 per cent respectively.
However, the 2023 half-year group results show a £109m erosion in net cash, which the firm attributed to forecast working-capital outflow and an £87m share-repurchase scheme.
Standing at £16.4bn on 30 June, the group’s order book remained hefty, but was still 6 per cent lower than the first half of last year. However, in a statement accompanying the results, Balfour Beatty chief executive Leo Quinn said a focus on lower-risk bids helped to offset headwinds from high inflation and interest rates.
Daniel Wood, construction partner at law firm Gowling WLG, said Balfour Beatty’s half-year results had “shown resilience”, adding that long-term work on HS2 high-speed rail and the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station provided “solid foundations for the business to continue its upward trajectory”.
Balfour Beatty is the UK’s biggest contractor. In its 2022 financial year ending 31 December, the group posted a pre-tax profit of £287m from turnover of £7.63bn, or £8.93bn including joint and associate ventures. Its UK construction arm logged revenue of £2.76bn and pre-tax profit of £59m.
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