Travis Perkins shares are down more than 6% on Tuesday, trading at 1,142p per share as the British construction materials supplier reported a 20% plunge in revenues during the first six months of 2020 due to the pandemic.
Travis Perkins sales were primarily affected by shut down construction sites across the UK as the virus situation prompted builders to halt their operations to protect workers.
Sales fell to £2.8bn from £3.5bn over the same period last year while Travis reported a loss per share of 45.7p contrasting with the 4.2p in earnings per share it brought during the first six months of 2019.
Nick Roberts, Chief Executive of Travis Perkins said, “our financial performance in the first half of 2020 was impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, and we have had to undertake a restructuring programme in light of the challenging outlook for the Group’s end markets.”
Part of these restructuring efforts include shutting down around 165 branches while laying off approximately 2,500 employees, around 9% of TPK’s workforce as the company continues to trim down its operating expenses to remain profitable despite a deceleration in construction activity.
Travis have also slashed its interim dividend and announced that it will be pausing the demerger of its Wickes unit as a result of the unfavorable environment caused by the pandemic.