Slater and Gordon swings to a AU$1bn loss
Shares in Slater and Gordon (S&G) fell 15 per cent on the ASX 200 after the Australian law firm posted a chunky net loss today.
The figures
The group, which is based in Sydney, announced a net loss of AU$1.02bn (£590m) in the 12 months to June – down from a profit of AU$62.4m last year.
The results – which S&G's managing director Andrew Grech described as "disappointing" – were due in part to a AU$879.5m impairment charge. The law firm also incurred AU$33.3m in restructuring costs associated with its UK business.
S&G's revenue rose from AU$598.2m last year to AU$908.2m this year.
Why it's interesting
The loss for the troubled firm is not too surprising; the results come after the acquisition of insurance claims processor Quindell. Most of S&G's impairment charge comes from that deal.
The firm was also hit by George Osborne's Autumn Statement last November, when he announced he would make it more difficult to claim for injuries caused by road traffic accidents.
What Slater & Gordon said
Grech said: "The results for the first half were extremely disappointing and well below expectations. In the second half we have taken significant steps towards turning around the performance of the UK business.
"Whilst the UK performance improvement programme is still in its early stages, the second half results indicate that our efforts are beginning to bear fruit.
"The UK business has shown significant performance improvement in the second half and enters FY17 with positive momentum."