Galliford Try lifts dividend as H1 profits jump

Construction firm Galliford Try posted a jump in first-half profit and revenue on Wednesday as it hailed growth in both the building and infrastructure segments, and lifted its dividend.

In the six months to the end of December 2023, pre-tax profit before exceptional costs rose 33% to £15.6m, while revenues were up 21% to £819m.

The order book ticked up to £3.7bn from £3.5bn a year earlier and the company lifted its interim dividend by 33% to 4p a share.

Galliford said 98% of projected revenue for the current financial year was secured, while 83% was already secured for the next.

Revenue in the building segment grew 12% to £446m during the half as the group benefited from the volume of new work that was delayed by inflation and public sector procurement challenges in 2022.

"We continue to target margin progression, with the improvement in the period reflecting the performance of projects across the business and our strategy of focusing on bottom line growth," it said.

In the infrastructure business, revenue rose 31% to £362m.

Chief executive Bill Hocking said: "I am very pleased with the group's performance in the first half of the financial year. There is strong momentum in the business and our continued excellent performance is a reflection of our disciplined strategy, committed people and long established relationships with our supply chain and clients.

"The group has delivered increased revenue and divisional operating margin, as we make accelerated progress towards our strategic objectives, and we will continue to provide long-term sustainable value for our stakeholders.

"Our strong and high quality order book, predominantly in long term frameworks, provides visibility and security of future workloads and continued growth prospects well beyond the current financial year."