Costain (COST) provided a welcome ray of sunshine with a positive trading statement which sent the shares up nearly 8 per cent to 318p. And despite all the uncertainty surrounding the referendum, the integrated services provider expects to deliver full-year results in line with management expectations.
In the first six months to the end of June, the order book rose more than 5 per cent to a record £3.9bn, with over 90 per cent reflecting repeat orders from existing customers. In addition, Costain also has a preferred bidder position on more than £400m, and tendering levels remain high.
With a domestically-focused order book little affected by pre-referendum uncertainty, Costain's one-stop-shop offering is obviously paying off as most of its work is repeat business. Indeed, the company is having to manage bidding activity given resource limitations.
