Stefanutti eyes expansion

Johannesburg - Construction firm Stefanutti Stocks Holdings (SSK) on Tuesday reported diluted headline earnings per share of 85.08c for the six months ended August 2008 compared with 40.22c a year ago.

No interim dividend was declared.

Revenue surged 131% to R2.57bn and operating profit jumped 126% to R176.2m. Order book stood at R6.6bn at the end of the interim period.

Stefanutti Stocks, which concluded a merger this year with Stocks Limited to become a first-tier construction firm, said it now has a geographical footprint across South Africa, Southern Africa and the Gulf region.

It added that it is well aligned within the infrastructure, mining, petrochemical and power generation markets and would continue to benefit from expected government and parastatal spend on infrastructural projects.

"It is anticipated that public and private infrastructure work will continue offering opportunities for growth to beyond 2010, with a number of projects in power generation, road infrastructure, department of water affairs and department of public works still to be awarded from government's committed spend.

Looking ahead, the group said both Southern Africa and the Gulf region - where it operates - continue to present attractive expansion prospects.

"However, the group will continue to monitor the impact on client expenditure programmes in light of the current uncertainty in global financial markets," it said.

- I-Net Bridge