Keller Group PLC on Wednesday said its 2023 profit is ‘significantly’ ahead of market expectations, following strong fourth quarter trading.

Analyst consensus for the London-based geotechnical engineering firm’s 2023 underlying operating profit is £150 million, an increase of 38% from £108.6 million in 2022.

Keller credited ‘record performance’ for the year in the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa region due to ‘high levels of demand and improved operational execution.’

The firm added that its underlying effective tax rate in 2023 is expected to be around 25%, up from its previous guidance of 22%, the latter which was also the tax rate in 2022.

Chief Executive Officer Michael Speakman said: ‘We are very encouraged by the group’s strong progress in 2023. The combination of management actions to improve operational performance in project execution, commercial agility in the face of a dynamic market, and the one-off benefits in North America will result in Keller delivering a record performance in 2023 that has significantly exceeded our original expectations.’

Shares in Keller rose 2.9% to 854.00 pence each in London on Wednesday morning.

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