The Accounts · daily brief
3 October 2026
A £144m break-up, and Sky's £6bn paper profit
The takeaways
- Forgings International files on a break-up basis as the £144m holding company prepares for liquidation
- Sky UK swung to a £253m pre-tax profit, lifted by a £6.1bn finance credit rather than core trading
- Npower Commercial Gas boosted operating profit by 38% despite a 25% revenue drop as commodity prices fell
Hiring signals · who grew, who shrank
Hiring
- Global Infrastructure Uk Limited 30 → 47 staff ▲ +57% staff cost +54%
- Carwow Ltd 338 → 509 staff ▲ +51% staff cost +52%
Cutting
- Woodford Group Limited 478 → 320 staff ▼ −33% staff cost −22%
- M&E Global Limited 793 → 541 staff ▼ −32% staff cost −26%
Average headcount from the accounts filed yesterday — a look back at last year's payroll, not a live hiring tracker.
Filing of note
Forgings International Limited
Forgings International Limited is a non-trading intermediate holding company within the Firth Rixson aerospace forgings group, ultimately controlled by FR Acquisitions Corporation (Europe) Limited.
Filed on a break-up basis — the business is being wound up.
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Operating profit | £0 | £0 | |
| Profit before tax | £5,000 | £1.9m | ▼ −100% |
| Net profit | £4,000 | £1.4m | ▼ −100% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Net assets | £144.6m | £144.6m | ▲ +0% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 0 | 0 | |
| Staff cost | £0 | £0 | |
| Director pay | £0 | £0 | |
A notable filing comes from this aerospace holding company, which has prepared its accounts on a break-up basis. The filing outlines plans to liquidate the entity in the coming year as part of a wider group restructuring. The company holds £144m in net assets and generated no turnover, typical of a non-trading intermediate holdco preparing to wind up.
Sky Uk Limited [1]
Trading as Sky, the company is the primary UK operating subsidiary of the Comcast-owned Sky Group (formerly Sky plc) and provides pay-television, broadband, and mobile telecommunications services.
Paper profit
| Line | FY24 | FY23 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £10.4bn | £10.2bn | ▲ +2% |
| Admin expenses | £5.3bn | £5.3bn | ▼ −0% |
| Operating profit | −£112m | −£224m | ▲ +50% |
| Finance costs | £406m | £310m | ▲ +31% |
| Profit before tax | £253m | −£773m | ▲ +133% |
| Net profit | £250m | −£751m | ▲ +133% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £181m | £178m | ▲ +2% |
| Net assets | £5.8bn | £4.7bn | ▲ +24% |
| Dividends paid | −£1m | — | |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 10,179 | 10,036 | ▲ +1% |
| Staff cost | £810m | £831m | ▼ −3% |
| Director pay | £6m | £8m | ▼ −25% |
| Highest-paid director | £3m | £3m | ▲ −0% |
While core trading remains loss-making, the operating deficit at Sky's UK arm halved to £112m. The most significant movement occurred below the line, where a £6.1bn finance credit lifted the business to a £253m pre-tax profit. The filing notes this follows a Comcast corporate reorganisation that transferred Sky Germany and Sky Italy out of the UK structure. The accounts are prepared on a going-concern basis, supported by a letter from Comcast.
E.On Next Energy Limited [2]
Operating via eonnext.com, the entity is the UK retail energy supply arm of the German utility group E.ON SE, formed to provide gas and electricity to domestic and commercial customers following E.ON's acquisition and integration of the former npower business.
Margin squeeze
| Line | FY24 | FY23 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £7.9bn | £12.3bn | ▼ −36% |
| Gross profit | £973m | £1.5bn | ▼ −35% |
| Admin expenses | £968m | £1.4bn | ▼ −31% |
| Operating profit | £33m | £133m | ▼ −75% |
| Finance costs | £9m | — | |
| Profit before tax | £24m | £145m | ▼ −83% |
| Net profit | £100m | £159m | ▼ −37% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £209m | £201m | ▲ +4% |
| Net assets | £150m | £50m | ▲ +200% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 3,852 | 3,321 | ▲ +16% |
| Staff cost | £151m | £121m | ▲ +25% |
| Director pay | £706k | £644k | ▲ +10% |
| Highest-paid director | £430k | £374k | ▲ +15% |
Turnover at the retail energy supplier dropped 35% to £7.9bn as wholesale commodity prices eased. Operating profit fell even more sharply, down 75% to £33m. Alongside the contraction in trading margins, the bottom line was lifted by a £76m tax credit, resulting in a final net profit of £100m. The period also saw the company absorb the ECO Obligation business from a fellow group entity.
J.C.B. Service [3]
Operating as the primary UK manufacturing and holding entity for the global JCB construction brand, this private unlimited company produces earthmoving equipment under the ultimate ownership of JCB Group Holdings SARL (jcb.com).
Softer sales
| Line | FY24 | FY23 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £5.8bn | £6.5bn | ▼ −10% |
| Gross profit | £1.4bn | £1.5bn | ▼ −10% |
| Admin expenses | £362.3m | £398.1m | ▼ −9% |
| Operating profit | £693m | £815.1m | ▼ −15% |
| Finance costs | £79.9m | £84.6m | ▼ −6% |
| Profit before tax | £687.3m | £805.8m | ▼ −15% |
| Net profit | £497.9m | £620.7m | ▼ −20% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £1.0bn | £1.1bn | ▼ −10% |
| Net assets | £2.2bn | £2.6bn | ▼ −16% |
| Dividends paid | −£421.9m | −£300m | ▼ −41% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 14,734 | 13,571 | ▲ +9% |
| Staff cost | £661.7m | £639.6m | ▲ +3% |
| Director pay | £7m | £7.2m | ▼ −3% |
| Highest-paid director | £3.3m | £3.3m | ▲ −0% |
The consolidated parent of the JCB group saw turnover slip 10% to £5.8bn, mirroring a wider downturn in the global construction equipment market. Operating profit followed sales down, dropping to £693m. Alongside the softer trading, the group expanded its headcount by 8% to 14,734, while the period also saw an increase in the dividend payout to £421m, up from £300m the year prior.
Npower Commercial Gas Limited [4]
Npower Commercial Gas Limited is a UK business energy supplier providing electricity, gas, and efficiency solutions to commercial and public-sector clients, operating as a subsidiary of npower limited within the wider E.ON group (eonnext.com).
Wider margins
| Line | FY24 | FY23 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £4.9bn | £6.6bn | ▼ −26% |
| Gross profit | £492.4m | £465m | ▲ +6% |
| Admin expenses | £237.7m | £216.4m | ▲ +10% |
| Operating profit | £257.8m | £186.1m | ▲ +38% |
| Finance costs | £6.1m | £5.6m | ▲ +10% |
| Profit before tax | £274.2m | £181.6m | ▲ +51% |
| Net profit | £207.8m | £128.5m | ▲ +62% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £8,000 | £2,000 | ▲ +300% |
| Net assets | £257.4m | £269.6m | ▼ −5% |
| Dividends paid | −£220m | −£30m | ▼ −633% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 1,021 | 1,006 | ▲ +1% |
| Staff cost | £65.1m | £60.6m | ▲ +7% |
| Highest-paid director | £553.2m | £638m | ▼ −13% |
A mirror image of the retail market, this commercial energy supplier saw turnover fall 25% to £4.9bn on lower commodity prices, while margins widened. Operating profit climbed 38% to £257m, which the filing attributes to the absence of prior-year industry charging review costs. The strong cash generation supported a £220m dividend payment back to the wider E.ON group.
J.C. Bamford Excavators Limited [5]
J.C. Bamford Excavators Limited is a privately held British manufacturer of earthmoving and construction equipment operating under the JCB brand, wholly owned by JCB Service, with its public website at jcb.com.
Volume drop
| Line | FY24 | FY23 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £4.9bn | £5.3bn | ▼ −8% |
| Gross profit | £1.0bn | £1.1bn | ▼ −9% |
| Admin expenses | £328.9m | £342.6m | ▼ −4% |
| Operating profit | £466.9m | £527.3m | ▼ −11% |
| Finance costs | £55.7m | £67.2m | ▼ −17% |
| Profit before tax | £444m | £515.3m | ▼ −14% |
| Net profit | £316m | £386m | ▼ −18% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £265.1m | £415.6m | ▼ −36% |
| Net assets | £896.1m | £1.2bn | ▼ −26% |
| Dividends paid | −£655m | −£547.5m | ▼ −20% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 11,125 | 9,836 | ▲ +13% |
| Staff cost | £418.6m | £387.4m | ▲ +8% |
| Director pay | £5.7m | £5.9m | ▼ −3% |
| Highest-paid director | £3.3m | £3.3m | ▲ −0% |
The primary manufacturing subsidiary for JCB echoes its parent's trajectory, with turnover down 8% to £4.8bn on reduced global sales volumes. Operating profit slipped to £466m, while the business expanded its workforce by 13% to over 11,000 staff. The entity remains highly cash-generative, paying out a £655m dividend during the year.
A reminder that when trading is challenging, a corporate restructure or a tax credit can significantly reshape the bottom line.
Sources
- Sky Uk Limited
- E.On Next Energy Limited
- J.C.B. Service
- Npower Commercial Gas Limited
- J.C. Bamford Excavators Limited