Construction firm Kier set for £150m equity raise and division sale – report
Construction firm Kier is reportedly finalising plans for an £150m equity raise and the sale of one of its divisions in a bid to fix its balance sheet.
Sky News reported that the FTSE 250 firm was planning to announce the raise alongside its half year results in April.
It is also putting the finishing touches to plans to sell of Kier Living, its housebuilding arm, to a consortium led Terra Firma Capital Partners.
Terra Firma, which is one of Europe’s largest private equity groups, will co-invest alongside funds managed by Goldman Sachs and Swiss firm Partners Group.
Sky reported that the deal could be worth up to £115m.
Kier has roles in some of the government’s largest projects, such as the HS2 rail link and the Crossrail line.
Back in September it beat analyst expectations despite the slowdown in construction caused by the closure of sites due to coronavirus in the spring.
Its adjusted profit before tax fell 72.5 per cent to £16.9m, compared to £61.4m in 2019 after costs related to restructuring and Covid-19.
Costs directly related to the impact of Covid-19 came to £45m, knocking revenue down 15 per cent to £3.5bn.
Kier declined to comment.