Galliford Try makes 'good operational progress' in H1

Construction company Galliford Try said on Wednesday that it had performed well in the first half of its financial year, with trading in line with internal expectations as the group made "further good operational progress" in the period.

Galliford Try said all of its projects were fully operational, in line with the latest Government and industry Covid-19 guidelines, and highlighted that its "disciplined approach", investment in modern construction practices and digitalisation, and active engagement with its supply chain had proved to be "particularly important" during recent material shortages and inflation.

The London-listed firm noted that the integration of the NMCN water businesses, acquired in October 2021, was ongoing and that its interim results would include non-underlying costs in relation to the acquisition and integration, and in relation to its investment in cloud-based enterprise resource planning systems.

Galliford Try added that recent project wins, contributing to £3.4bn to its order book, included its share of the £7.0bn Department for Education 2021 Construction Framework, the £55.0m Galashiels Community Campus on behalf of Scottish Borders Council and Hub South East and a £56.0m private rented sector scheme in Milton Keynes.

Chief executive Bill Hocking said: "We are pleased with our performance in the first half of the financial year. We have made strong progress on our strategic objectives. Our recent acquisition of NMCN's water business, fully aligned to our strategy, offers significant opportunity to the Group and our water sector and related clients.

"With our excellent people, strong balance sheet, market-leading sector positions, and high-quality order book we are well placed to deliver strong future performance and long-term sustainable value for all stakeholders."

As of 0930 GMT, Galliford Try shares were down 2.50% at 174.33p.