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Investing.com -- United Utilities on Thursday reported a significant increase in first-half profit and maintained its full-year guidance as the water company benefited from lower finance costs.
The UK water utility posted operating profit of £562 million for the first half of its 2025/26 financial year, representing a 67% increase year-on-year and exceeding company consensus by 6%.
Revenue for the period reached £1,309 million, up 21% compared to the same period last year and in line with consensus expectations.
Profit before tax jumped to £361 million from £183 million in the first half of 2024/25, helped by finance costs that were 30% lower than the previous year.
Earnings per share came in at 52.8p, beating consensus estimates by 3%, while the interim dividend was set at 17.88p, an increase of 3.5% in line with the company’s policy of CPIH inflation-linked growth.
United Utilities maintained its regulatory capital value (RCV) gearing at 60%, unchanged from its full-year 2025 results.
Looking ahead, the company reaffirmed its guidance for the 2025/26 financial year, expecting revenue between £2.5-2.6 billion, with lower operating expenses, £50 million higher depreciation and amortization, and £50 million higher financial expense.
The water provider introduced formal earnings per share guidance of approximately 100p for the full year, which aligns with market consensus.
United Utilities slightly adjusted its capital expenditure outlook, now expecting spending of around £1.5 billion compared to its previous guidance of "over £1.5 billion."
The company continues to anticipate a net penalty for its Outcome Delivery Incentives (ODI) for the full year.
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