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LONDON (Alliance News) - Architecture and interior design company Aukett Swanke Group PLC said Thursday its profit in its most recent financial year was below its targets, as it faced weakness in the UK and Russian markets.
Aukett Swanke reported pretax profit of GBP927,000 for its financial year ended September 30, 2016, shrinking from GBP1.9 million the prior financial year.
The company noted profit was hurt by a slowdown in the UK market following the Brexit vote, with fixed costs and staff reductions not "immediately following" revenue reduction during the year.
However, revenue for the period increased to GBP20.8 million from GBP18.7 million the prior financial year, which Aukett Swanke said was in line with expectations. The improvement reflects new earnings from recent acquisitions in the Middle East, offsetting a slump in UK and Russian operations, it said.
Aukett Swanke said it expects no contribution in profit from its UK operations until the second half of its current financial year, having reduced staffing levels, although the company said enquiry levels have now stabilised.
"Whilst we had hoped for a better outcome in 2016, we remain encouraged by the progress that we have made in developing our business model and that this will ultimately generate both the results and cash flow that we have anticipated," said Nicholas Thompson, chief executive officer of Aukett Swanke.
Aukett Swanke said it will delay a decision over the payment of its dividend until its annual general meeting in March. The company had previously announced a lowered interim dividend of 0.07 pence a share. For the year prior, it paid a total of 0.18p.
Aukett Swanke said that while it is "confident of its long term position", it will defer the decision on the full-year payment, due to the slowdown in the UK and the company's funding requirements in the Middle East.
Shares in Aukett Swanke were trading flat at 3.50 pence Thursday.
By Adam Clark; adamclark@alliancenews.com
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