WS Atkins beats raised expectations

Design and engineering consultancy WS Atkins topped revenue and profit expectations in what it described as a transformational year for the company.Revenue in the year ended 31 March rose 12.7% to £1,564m from £1,388m the year before, marginally ahead of market consensus of £1.558m.Underlying profit before tax climbed 9.4% to £102.7m from £93.9m a year earlier. The market had been expecting a figure of around £96.14m. "As reported" profit before tax slipped 5.8% to £91.0m from £96.6m in the preceding year.Underlying operating profit improved to £118.7m from £110.4m the year before, but the underlying operating margin eased to 7.6% from 8.0%.Work in hand at the start of the new financial year represented 55% of budgeted revenue for the full year. At the same stage in 2010, the figure was 54%.The company said the outlook for the current year remains unchanged and in line with market expectations.A final dividend of 19.5p has been recommended, taking the full-year total to 29.0p, up 5.5% on the 27.5p paid the year before. --jh