Atkins

Press Release

Results for the year ended 31 March 2006

22/06/2006

Professional services group WS Atkins plc (Atkins) today announced preliminary unaudited results for the year ended 31 March 2006.

RESULTS SUMMARY

	2006	2005
Total revenue	£1,411.0m	£1,157.3m
Revenue excluding Joint Ventures	£1,052.5m	£955.0m
Operating profit1	£62.9m	£50.2m
Operating margin1	6.0%	5.3%
Normalised profit before taxation2	£72.4m	£62.2m
Profit before taxation	£74.8m	£53.0m
Normalised fully diluted EPS2	50.1p	42.5p
Fully diluted EPS	55.9p	38.7p
Dividend	16.0p	12.0p
Cash flow from operating activities	£111.7m	£88.1m
Net funds	£176.6m	£121.7m
Headcount (including agency staff)	14,907	13,892

HIGHLIGHTS

• Good results at the top end of expectations, with revenue growth of 10% and operating profit¹ up 25%.
• Operating margin¹ increased from 5.3% to 6.0%.
• Significant revenue growth in Design and Engineering Solutions (17%), Middle East and China (53%) and Management and Project Services (13%).
• Headcount (including agency staff) increased by over 1,000 during the year to approximately 15,000.
• The Rail business started to recover in the second half of the year, as predicted.
• Profits from the Group’s activities relating to the Metronet Enterprise³ decreased from £11.9m⁴ to £4.6m.
• Strong order book, with work in hand representing 62% of budgeted revenue for 2006/07 (2005: 57%).
• Improved cash flow from operating activities of £111.7m (2005: £88.1m), in spite of accelerated deficit funding payments to the pension scheme of £20.0m (2005: £8.6m).
• Net funds increased from £121.7m to £176.6m.
• The Board is recommending a final dividend of 11.5p, making the total dividend for the year 16.0p (2005: 12.0p), an increase of 33%.

Notes:

1. The operating profit and operating margin for 2005 are stated excluding a charge for goodwill impairment in that year amounting to £7.2m.
2. Normalised profit before taxation is defined as profit before taxation excluding JV taxation and any profits or losses from disposals. Normalised fully diluted EPS is defined as fully diluted EPS before any profits or losses from disposals. These are considered to be more representative measures of underlying trading. Comparative figures for the year ended 31 March 2005 exclude a goodwill impairment charge of £7.2m in that year.
3. The Metronet Enterprise comprises the Group’s interest in the Metronet and Trans4m Joint Ventures and the related Atkins supply chain.
4. The prior year figure for profit from the Metronet Enterprise excludes the pro forma adjustments in relation to IFRIC D12-D14.

“The Group made good progress last year and produced significantly increased profits. Revenue grew by 10%, operating margins increased to 6.0% and headcount grew by over 1,000. In particular, the Design and Engineering Solutions and Management and Project Services segments grew substantially and our business in the Middle East has gone from strength to strength. During the year we made substantial investment in initiatives targeted to improve the development and retention of our staff and this is starting to yield benefits. The Metronet Enterprise, however, continues to present challenges and this has impacted the Group’s overall profitability.

“The outlook for the Group remains positive and demand for our services is strong in all our markets. At the end of the year, work in hand was 62% of our budgeted revenue for 2006/07, compared to 57% last year. We are confident that the continued focus on people and our core skills will enable the Group to achieve further profitable growth”.

Ed Wallis	Keith Clarke
Chairman	Chief Executive

Enquiries

Atkins
Keith Clarke, Chief Executive	+ 44 (0) 1372 726140
Robert MacLeod, Group Finance Director	+ 44 (0) 1372 726140
Brunswick
Mike Smith, Jonathan Rhodes	+44 (0) 20 7404 5959

Notes to Editors

1. Atkins

Atkins (www.atkinsglobal.com) plans, designs and enables the delivery of complex capital programmes for clients in the public and private sectors across the globe. Atkins is the largest multi-disciplinary consultancy in Europe; the largest engineering consultancy in the UK; and the world’s fourth largest design firm (sources: New Civil Engineer Consultants File, 2006; Swedish Federation of Consultant Engineers & Architects, 2005; Engineering News Record, 2005).

2. Attachments

Attached to this press release are the Overview of the year, Operating review, Financial review, the unaudited consolidated income statement, consolidated statement of recognised income and expense, consolidated balance sheet, consolidated cash flow statement and notes to the unaudited preliminary financial information for the year.

3. Analyst Presentation

A presentation for analysts will be held today at The City Presentation Centre, 4 Chiswell Street, Finsbury Square, London EC1Y 4UP at 9.00am. A webcast of the presentation will subsequently be available via the Company’s website, www.atkinsglobal.com.

4. Cautionary Statement

This press release has only been prepared for the shareholders of the Company, as a whole, and its sole purpose and use is to assist shareholders to exercise their governance rights. In particular, this press release has not been audited or otherwise independently verified. The Company and its directors and employees are not responsible for any other purpose or use or to any other person in relation to this press release.

This press release contains indications of likely future developments and other forward looking statements that are subject to risk factors associated with, among other things, the economic and business circumstances occurring from time to time in the countries, sectors and business segments in which the Group operates. These and other factors could adversely affect the Group’s results, strategy and prospects. Forward looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. They relate to events and/or depend on circumstances in the future which could cause actual results and outcomes to differ. No obligation is assumed to update any forward looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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