‘Step change’ deal announced

EARNZ yesterday evening announced H1 results to 30 June 2026, showing a 79% increase in revenue to £8.4m and a small EBITDA loss of £0.4m. The ‘buy and build’ energy services group also announced the conditional acquisition of certain assets of profitable London-based GEM Environmental Services for a maximum consideration of £23.6m over two years. EARNZ expects it to be earnings accretive in the first full year of ownership and a ‘step change’ in building a ‘c.£130m turnover business with a double digit EBITDA margin’.

‘Step change’ deal announced

Nexus Infrastructure has indicated in its year-end trading update that it expects a loss for the 12 months to 30 September, against expectations of a modest profit, primarily reflecting ‘the continued challenging market backdrop’, impacting most leading housebuilders. Although the group, which delivers ‘front-end’ earthworks to the development and utilities sector, should be an early beneficiary of an upturn in construction activity, it ‘has remained focused on operational efficiency, cost discipline and cash management’. As such, the Board has removed the CEO position.

Building slowdown prompts cost-cutting drive

As a continuing part of its refreshed strategy to ‘climb the value chain’, leading structural steel specialist Severfield has bolstered its senior management team with the appointment of Terry Fitzmaurice as Chief Commercial Officer. We believe this will further sharpen client and partnership focus as part of its plan for higher margins and returns.

Senior hire reinforces refreshed strategy

Ahead of Friday’s AGM, Accsys Technologies has released a trading update confirming FY27E underlying group EBITDA will be ‘broadly in line with market expectations’, on lower revenue but improved margins. However, it guides that destocking by distributors, especially in its US JV, prompted by fears over inflation from the Middle East conflict, means that adjusted EBITDA, which proportionately includes the JV contribution, will be lower than expected. We have reduced our estimates for FY27E and FY28E, but maintain them for the rest of the period, in the expectation that the pioneering timber product group’s strong growth trajectory will recover.

Growth temporarily held as distributors destock

EARNZ, launched in 2024 by the highly experienced team behind Mears and Sureserve, has embarked on a ‘buy and build’ strategy to improve the energy efficiency of UK homes and commercial buildings. Its current five businesses already offer a broad but complementary suite of services including heating maintenance and installation as well as insulation. Much of this is supported by large government programmes to tackle fuel poverty. The group intends to continue acquisitions, building critical mass in a fragmented market, which offers significant longterm growth, we believe.

Buy and build growth path to aid energy crisis

Watkin Jones highlights its continued diversification strategy in the face of rental sector challenges in today’s update for the year to 30 September 2026. As stated in its Q3 update, a small number of transactions had the potential to complete in Q4, but the Board now concludes it is unlikely that all of them will be finalised by the year-end, with the FY26E adjusted operating profit likely to match the first half. However, net cash should exceed the £61m at the half year and the group remains ‘well positioned to capitalise on the attractive long-term fundamentals’ of private rental.

FY outlook dependent on transaction timing

Severfield’s new management team has set out ambitious earnings growth targets, focusing the structural steel group’s strategy towards higher margins and returns, by climbing the ‘value chain’ in sectors in which its engineering expertise and balance sheet strength are ideally suited. In the UK and Europe, these include power, datacentres and, increasingly, defence. Meanwhile, the Indian JV is poised to accelerate growth. The 29 July AGM confirmed ‘in line’ performance and strong order growth.

Refreshed strategy sharpens focus on returns

Angela Rayner, in one of her first statements since returning as Housing Secretary, publicly ruled out rent controls, in response to calls from left-leaning think tanks for an intervention in the lettings market. We believe the perceived risk of rent controls had undermined investment in the wider private rental sector. PM Andy Burnham’s cabinet reshuffle also brought in other pro-development heavyweights, not least the new Chancellor, to the top of government – adding, in our view, to a series of positives for Grainger.

Rayner reins-in rent controls parade

Earnz PLC

In a trading update for Q3, to 30 June, Watkin Jones has signalled £60m of new contract wins, further validating the UK’s leading developer and manager of residential for rent’s diversified growth strategy against the recent backdrop of slower investment in some of its core new-build activities. However, the appointment of recognised pro-development members to PM Andy Burnham’s new Cabinet and returning Housing Secretary Angela Rayner’s ruling out of rent controls bode well, in our view.

Contract wins validate refreshed strategy

Severfield’s new management team has posted a confident AGM statement, continuing the momentum towards its ambitious target of quadrupling earnings medium term by focusing the structural steel group’s strategy towards higher margins and returns. Guidance for FY27 is unchanged, including underlying PBT of £12-15m, leaving our estimate of £13.0m looking increasingly conservative. We upgrade our FY28E forecast and introduce a FY29E estimate, continuing rapid growth towards its target, which we believe is based on a five-year horizon to around FY31E.

Positive momentum builds in AGM update

Forterra has delivered another resilient performance in what continues to be a ‘challenging’ market, with revenue in the first half to 30 June falling by c.9% LFL but with an improved EBITDA margin. Guidance is that FY26 will be in line with consensus, with a similar performance in H2. We had anticipated a stronger second half and have reduced our estimates. However, we believe Andy Burnham’s new Cabinet could spur council house building.