Travis Perkins: Profit plunges as construction industry recovery remains sluggish
Travis Perkins has reported a 99 per cent plunge in operating profit in 2024, after a torrid year for the Nottinghamshire-headquartered firm.
The FTSE 250 building group reported an operating profit of £2m, down from £161m in 2023, after a 4.7 per cent revenue decline.
Shares in the group fell 10.4 per cent in early trading on Tuesday morning.
The figures include £139m in asset impairments.
Bleak results for the firm were put down to “lower trading volumes and price deflation”, in spite of “significantly improved cost discipline.”
However, the firm highlighted the robust performance of its Toolstation business – which reported a 48 per cent surge in adjusted operating profit.
In 2024, Travis Perkins shuttered Toolstation France as part of a broader effort to trim costs and refocus core business lines.
Travis Perkins’ chair Geoff Drabble – who is deputising in the place of a formal chief executive – said that the poor results show “there are a number of areas where the business needs to refocus and change the way it operates.”
In March, former chief Pete Redfern stepped down with immediate effect due to ill health after just six months in the job.
Redfern – appointed in September 2024 – had previously been a non-executive at the firm, following a 14-year stint as Taylor Wimpey’s boss.
Peel Hunt analysts at the time had predicted that the new leadership could have been “a catalyst” for revenue growth.
Drabble said: “Whilst uncertainty remains regarding the strength and timing of a recovery in UK construction activity, with more resources re-deployed into customer-facing roles, the Group is now better placed to benefit from returning demand.
“This will be supported by disciplined capital allocation, focused on upgrading and protecting our core competitive advantages, and a clear customer-focused strategy owned by the leaders of the business.”