Atkins - how to prosper in a downturn
Atkins’ results for the year to March show how well the best companies in the sector are (more than) surviving the downturn.
This downturn is very real - ONS announced that construction, which drives much of Atkins’ revenue, fell 9% in Q1 2009. Yet Atkins results suggest that the best companies are still making money. Their revenue is up 13%, margin ahead 0.3pp and EPS up 23%. Shareholders should be well pleased.
But tucked away in the notes is the fact that, of Atkins’ 18,017 staff at year end, approximately 600 were under notice of redundancy.
That’s not Atkins’ fault - any recovery can only be built by strong companies - but it is a reminder that, while GDP has bottomed and the stockmarket is up, there’s a fair but of pain still to be felt in households up and down the country. Unemployment will be rising for a while yet.
