Laing O’Rourke returns to profit

• Business recovers following challenging FY23 impacted by record inflation
• Pre-exceptional Group revenue increases to £4.0bn, up 18.2% versus prior year
• Pre-exceptional EBIT of £75.6m (loss of £(78.8)m in FY23)
• Post-exceptional EBIT of £40.0m and strong net cash of £278.5m
• Record orderbook of £10.8bn (£10.0bn in FY23)
• Group Chief Financial Officer, Rowan Baker, will leave at the end of September to become CFO at a FTSE 250 company and will be succeeded by Paul Teasdale

Laing O’Rourke today published its Group accounts for FY24 (the 12 months to 31 March 2024), confirming the business has made a strong recovery and delivered profit across both its operating hubs.

The results show pre-exceptional revenue growth of 18.2% to £4.0bn and a pre-exceptional EBIT of £75.6m (post-exceptional EBIT of £40.0m).

The Australian business continued to perform strongly in FY24 and in the UK the business has overcome a period of record inflation which impacted a small number of fixed-price contracts.

The Group generated net cash of £278.5m, and grew its order book, which stood at a record £10.0bn in FY23, to £10.8bn – the largest it has ever been.

The growth of the order book is the result of the business winning work in its six priority sectors – healthcare, energy and green power, rail and road, defence, science and research, and data centres – in line with the refreshed strategy implemented by Cathal O’Rourke since he returned to the UK in April 2023.

Group Chief Financial Officer, Rowan Baker, who will leave the business at the end of September, said:

“These results show significant improvement in our Group performance. The business has returned to profit and is recovering well from an unprecedented set of challenges in FY23. We have grown Group revenue significantly, by 18%, have strong net cash of £278.5m and added another £800m to the order book. Allied to our refreshed Group strategy, which is reducing our exposure to market events beyond our control, these accounts give the business reason to be confident about the future.”

Cathal O’Rourke, Group Chief Executive, said:

“I am delighted to confirm a return to profit for our business. This provides stability and a platform from which we can keep building certainty and resilience. I’m particularly pleased that we continue to win work in our priority sectors in both operating hubs – it assures me we have the right strategy in place to de-risk our portfolio and achieve long-term sustainable growth.

“Delivering these results has taken a huge amount of work by our people and I want to thank them for their hard work and commitment.

“There remains much for us to do to unlock the full potential of our business and transform the industry so that it can deliver the buildings and infrastructure governments in the UK and Australia need to keep their countries secure, make the energy transition and protect the health of their citizens. We have the people, experience and technologies to deliver these essential works in a better way, and that makes us excited about the future.

“As Rowan steps down as Group CFO, I want to thank her for the contribution she has made to Laing O’Rourke.  She leaves with our thanks and best wishes for the future. In Paul Teasdale, we have appointed a capable and experienced finance leader who was instrumental to the growth of our business in Australia. I am looking forward to working closely with him again in his new role.”

Paul Teasdale joined Laing O’Rourke in 2018 from Lendlease and previously spent nine years at American Express, where he held several senior international finance roles. He is a qualified chartered accountant with a wealth of business experience and was recently appointed Deputy Group Chief Financial Officer. He understands the business’ international operations well and has a strong track record of building teams and developing people.

Sir John Parker, Chair of Laing O’Rourke, said:

“This recovery has been achieved despite ongoing market turbulence, which makes it more impressive. I am confident we have in place the right strategy, refreshed leadership, and a new organisational structure to keep building certainty and resilience.

“As she returns to work for a listed company, I want to extend our thanks to Rowan Baker. She has been our CFO during a volatile period and has helped the business navigate the impacts of the pandemic and unprecedented inflation. We wish her well.”

Rowan Baker added:

“It has been a privilege to be part of Laing O’Rourke for the last four years, working with exceptional people to deliver projects of national importance. During this time the sector has faced a unique set of challenges, and I am proud of how we worked together to overcome them. I want to thank Ray, Cathal and our Chair, Sir John Parker, for their confidence and support and I wish the business every success in the future.”