Breedon revenues jump 56% in 10 months

AIM-listed Breedon said on Wednesday that it delivered "another solid performance" in the 10 months to the end of October, with both volumes and revenue ahead of the previous year.

Total group revenue in the period increased 56% to around £561m, including a full 10-month contribution from the former Hope Construction Materials business, which was bought at the start of last year. Group sales volumes of aggregates rose 47%, with asphalt up 2% and concrete up 99%. Meanwhile, the group said the cement business is performing in line with its expectations.

Breedon said that assuming normal weather conditions for the remainder of the financial year, its full-year underlying earnings before interest and taxes should be in line with current market expectations of between £74m and £83m.

"Forecasters expect construction output to grow modestly in 2017 and remain broadly flat next year before returning to growth in 2019. More significantly for us, new infrastructure and housing work - which together account for approximately two-thirds of our end-use markets - are expected to show healthy growth over the next two years.

"We continue to invest in our business at record levels, which is yielding appreciable benefits in terms of enhanced performance and improved productivity. This organic improvement gives us confidence that we will make further progress in 2018."

At 1230 GMT, the shares were up 1% to 83.80p.