Aberdeen company Wood has seen another dramatic collapse in its share price – dropping by more than 30%.
The engineering firm, which employs 35,000 people, has revealed a “difficult” and “disappointing” financial year.
Following today’s update, Wood’s value fell by almost £140 million as shares dropped from Thursday’s closing price of 65.4p to 39.6p per share.
Wood said “significant work” has taken place since the start of its “urgent” independent review by Deloitte, which is still ongoing.
‘Difficult and disappointed’
Wood chief executive Ken Gilmartin said the latest update was a “difficult announcement” to make amid its transformation period.
He said: “While we have made progress, I am disappointed in our financial performance.
“Consequently, we are taking decisive actions to ensure we can meet the opportunities we have in growing markets, principally energy.
“While the likely findings from the independent review are expected to have no material impact on the group’s cash position and future cash generation, it clearly gives us areas to focus on.
“We are initiating steps now to further improve our financial culture, governance and controls.”
Wood said it expected a “very strong” trading performance in the final quarter of 2024 but it failed to materialise.
This lead to the decision to cancel its annual executive and employee bonus for the year.
Mr Gilmartin added: “We have announced further actions to address the cost base of the business to right size Wood for the future, and have laid out a very clear route to positive free cash flow in 2026.
“As we look ahead, notwithstanding the challenges today, I am confident the fundamentals of this company remain strong.
“We are in growing markets, with considerable in-demand engineering skills, trusted client relationships. We’re well positioned to grow the business.”
Wood share price plunges amid ongoing review
Wood said it will wait until Deloitte’s work and assessment is completed before reaching any conclusions of its own.
In August, Wood announced its half-year results, which showed a decline in turnover and a £756m loss.
However, it said significant work has been undertaken based on feedback and it doesn’t expect the findings to have a material impact on the group’s cash position.
Wood completed the sale of EthosEnergy in January, earning the firm £110 million.
It also increased its order book to around £5 billion, up significantly from £4.3 billion at September 30 2024.
However, its net debt on December 31 2024 sat at £550m.
Conversation