KCOM laments 'poor' enterprise performance ahead of strategic review

Firm considering cost reduction after sales drop five per cent

KCOM saw its revenue drop five per cent in its H1, largely attributed to weak performances in its business-focused units.

The firm saw sales for the six months ending 30 September 2018 drop five per cent year on year to £143.4m.

EBITDA increased two per cent to £30.5m, but KCOM said this was because the same period last year was affected by £6.2m of losses related to complex software contracts. EBITDA declined if this figure is taken out of the equation.

In a statement, KCOM said its numbers were hit by "poor performance" in its business segments - namely its national network services arm and enterprise division.

Recently appointed CEO Graham Sutherland said that KCOM will undertake a review of its business strategy following the publication of the results, which could result in cost reductions.

"The current financial performance of our two national businesses is below our expectations; in particular, in national network services where we are experiencing high levels of customer churn," he said.

"In the second half of the year, we will focus on three key priorities: review of our business strategy to identify how we create the best value from KCOM's assets, implementing initiatives to improve business performance, and improving transparency through clear metrics on which our progress can be measured.

"We will be in a position to share outputs from the strategic review in March."

Despite the business struggles, KCOM said that its phone network in Hull and east Yorkshire continues to perform as expected.

However, the firm claimed that business in its two units will "remain challenged" in the second half of this year and into 2019.