BT (BT.A) has revealed plans to cut up to 55,000 jobs by 2030 as part of a £3bn cost saving programme. Up to one fifth of the headcount cut will come from automation – with technologies including generative artificial intelligence being deployed in its customer service operations. An anonymous insider told the Financial Times that a much greater proportion (around 30,000) will be third-party contractors.
Since April 2020, the telecoms group has realised gross annualised cost savings of £2.1bn towards its target. CEO Philip Jansen told investors that by the end of the decade, BT will “rely on a much smaller workforce and a significantly reduced cost base”.
Its full-year results showed a modest drop in revenue of around 1 per cent, as well as a 5 per cent reduction in free cash flow due to increased cash-based capital expenditures and “adverse working capital movements”. Net debt was up £850mn – to a total of £18.9bn – primarily due to a billion-pound pension contribution by the company.
Meanwhile, adjusted ebitda for the year was up 5 per cent to £7.9bn thanks to the continued rollout of fibre optic network Openreach and above-inflation price hikes for some customers. UBS analysts predicted ahead of BT’s results announcement that it would “remain a volatile stock and trade within its 100-200p range over the past two years”. Shares were down 7 per cent to 137.8p by mid-morning. JJ
Read more: Why BT's 'Peter and Paul' strategy might irk its shareholders
EasyJet plans for a brighter summer
EasyJet (EZJ) reported an 80 per cent increase in half-year revenue to £2.69bn, but only cut its pre-tax loss by a quarter to £415mn, as it increased capacity ahead of a busier summer period.
Strong forward bookings mean it expects revenue per seat to be 20 per cent higher in the three months to June compared with the same period in 2022, with costs per seat likely to remain flat. Capacity is also being rebuilt – it is expected to be 9 per cent higher in the second half at 56mn seats, and to be “around pre-pandemic levels” by its September year-end.
Its relatively new holidays business tripled user numbers to 600,000 over the past six months and is likely to generate a profit of £80mn this year, chief executive Johan Lundgren said. Shares rose by 1 per cent in early trading, taking their year-to-date gain to 61 per cent. MF
Read more: Airlines boosted by pent-up demand and cheaper fuel
National Grid ups dividend
National Grid (NG) has increased its dividend after the utilities provider posted a 15 per cent jump in underlying operating profit. The £4.58bn figure in its results for the full-year to 31 March adjusts for its sale of NECO and Millennium Pipeline Company during the year.
The company also benefitted from a stronger dollar against the pound, with underlying profit only up 10 per cent on last year when its results are measured based on the average exchange rate for the year. ML
Genuit makes some home improvements
Building products group Genuit (GEN) said that action taken to restructure the business is beginning to pay off, with full-year operating profit expected to be “slightly ahead” of the consensus forecast of £84mn.
Although revenue in the first four months of the year was down by around 5 per cent, with volumes falling by 11 per cent, the actions taken to “simplify the business” and “address its cost base” were beginning to pay off.
Operating margins are ahead of last year and chief executive Joe Vorih said he saw further benefits ahead”. Shares rose 6 per cent in early trading. MF
Future struggles with audience decline
Shares in Future (FUTR) fell 13 per cent this morning after the media company revealed ‘organic revenue’ had shrunk by 10 per cent. The group warned that first half trends would continue in the second half of the year, and that its full year performance will be towards the “bottom end of current market expectations”. JS
