Shares in Wood Group more than halved in value yesterday as it revealed it is burning through cash and an independent review had found 'material weaknesses and failures'. The oil and gas engineering giant fell by 55.6 per cent, or 36.35p, to 29p as it revealed cost cuts, which will include cancelling bonuses for all employees, as it seeks to shore up its finances. And it is targeting disposals of assets worth up to £159m.
In what chief executive Ken Gilmartin described as a 'difficult announcement', it warned its cash flow would be negative this year – meaning it is spending more money than it is generating – by as much as £159m. It is the latest episode in a tumultuous few years in which it has faced activist pressure to sell itself and seen two takeovers fall through. Yesterday, it disclosed that a review by Deloitte had found failings in its 'financial culture, governance and controls'.
Gilmartin said the company was taking 'actions to address the cost base of the business to right-size Wood for the future' and had 'laid out a very clear route to positive-free cash flow in 2026'. Burning through cash: The oil and gas engineering giant fell by 55.6 per cent, or 36.35p, to 29p. With Donald Trump trade war concerns depressing dollar earners, the FTSE 100 closed 0.4 per cent, or 32.26 points, lower at 8732.46. However, the blue-chip index still managed to notch up an 0.3 per cent advance over the week. Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 ended 0.01 per cent, or 3.13 points, lower at 20,913.01.
Miner Glencore added 2.2 per cent, or 7.75p, to 353.2p, following Trump's trade retaliation threats, fuelling expectations of higher metal prices and increased demand for non-Chinese suppliers. Segro rose 1.3 per cent, or 9.4p, to 731.4p as the warehouse property developer gave an upbeat outlook after lower interest rates and higher rental income boosted 2024 profit. But Aviva edged down 0.2 per cent, or 1p, to 509.4p as analysts at Barclays raised their stance for the insurer to 'overweight' from 'equal weight'.
On the second line, XPS Pensions jumped 12.4 per cent, or 43p, to 390p as the financial services business said it has continued to perform strongly, with expected full-year revenue growth of around 15 per cent. Among the small caps, Totally fell 26.3 per cent, or 1.75p, to 4.9p after it said the NHS had not renewed its 111 national resilience support contract, worth £13m. The provider of healthcare and well-being services now expects earnings for the next financial year to be at a similar level to the current one.
Fiinu fell 12 per cent, or 1.5p, to 11p as the fintech firm raised £1.25m via a placing priced at 10p per share, with proceeds earmarked to develop a product it will offer to potential banking partners. But on the up, Serinus Energy climbed 18.8 per cent, or 0.45p, to 2.85p after announcing that the Superior Court of Cassation and Justice of Romania had ruled in its favour in a VAT litigation case.
