Interserve expansion strategy pays off

Revenue for the year to 31 December 2012 was £1,958.4m (2011: £1,847.5m).

Headline pre-tax profit reached £78.4m (2011:  £72.8m). Adding in one-off profits from selling PFI assets, booked pre-tax profit was £182.9m.

Chief executive Adrian Ringrose described 2012 as “a very good year for Interserve, in mixed market conditions”.

He added: “We grew earnings, generated strong cash flow and made good strategic progress. We won over £2.7bn of work during the year, expanding our future workload to £6.3 billion. We have confidence in our ability to make further progress in 2013, with further improvements in Support Services' margins, and continued recovery in Equipment Services offsetting soft Construction markets. Looking further ahead, with good potential in our existing sectors, expansion into new markets and our strong balance sheet, our medium-term growth prospects remain strong."

Chairman Lord Blackwell said: “In line with our growth strategy, we continued to expand our frontline services capability though the acquisition of a welfare-to-work business in May, a home healthcare business in December and in January 2013, a Middle East oil and gas services provider. Organically we have invested in new territories through our Equipment Services division and new markets for the Construction division, such as energy from waste, as well as creating a new Justice business unit.”

Further acquisitions can be expected where appropriate, the board said.

The UK construction operation remained under pressure in 2012 but contributed £14.6m to total operating profit, which was 19% down on 2011. Operating margin was 2.0%, reflecting increased competitive pressures in line with our expectations. The board expects margins to trend between 1.5% and 2.0% over the medium term.

Lord Blackwell added: “The breadth and scope of our operations is of significant benefit to the business. Our Support Services business has grown strongly, as the trend towards increased outsourcing in the UK accelerates and opportunities emerge in the oil and gas sector internationally. Our Construction division has been resilient, despite low demand in the UK and high levels of competition internationally, because of our continued focus on recurring business under framework contracts and our ability to innovate and differentiate ourselves from peers. Equipment Services, our most geographically diverse business, has experienced a wide range of local market conditions during the year. Active management of our global fleet has ensured that we have been well-placed to take advantage of the strongest markets, while making best use of our invested capital. We are now looking to increase levels of investment in this business as future demand progresses.”

Key performance indicators

Divisional results 

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