Doing more with less — profit up, headcount down
Profit rose the most while headcount fell — operational leverage, financials excluded · 856 qualifying · snapshot 2026-10-01
| # | Company | Industry | Profit added | Headcount | Latest PBT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO EXPORTS LIMITED Tobacco product manufacturing subsidiary | Consumer Staples | £605M | -7% | £2.00B |
| 02 | E.ON ENERGY SOLUTIONS LIMITED | Utilities | £521M | -6% | £640M |
| 03 | INDIVIOR UK LIMITED Addiction treatment pharmaceutical subsidiary | Health Care | £354M | -20% | £467M |
| 04 | ASDA EXPRESS LIMITED Fuel and convenience store operator | Consumer Discretionary | £353M | -43% | £485M |
| 05 | SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT EUROPE LIMITED European PlayStation operations subsidiary | Technology | £249M | -7% | £374M |
| 06 | VODAFONE GROUP SERVICES LIMITED Telecommunications group services subsidiary | Telecommunications | £246M | -19% | £322M |
| 07 | COCA-COLA EUROPACIFIC PARTNERS PLC Multinational beverage bottling company | Consumer Staples | £225M | -6% | £2.30B |
| 08 | BDW TRADING LIMITED Housebuilding subsidiary of Barratt Developments | Industrials | £220M | -6% | £389M |
| 09 | ITV BROADCASTING LIMITED Commercial television broadcasting subsidiary | Consumer Discretionary | £195M | -4% | £229M |
| 10 | CHIVAS BROTHERS LIMITED Scotch whisky distiller and blender | Consumer Staples | £187M | -3% | £354M |
| 11 | EHV UK LIMITED | Consumer Discretionary | £156M | -43% | £188M |
| 12 | QUALCOMM TECHNOLOGIES INTERNATIONAL, LTD. Wireless telecommunications technology subsidiary | Telecommunications | £152M | -5% | £285M |
| 13 | TARMAC CEMENT LIMITED Cement and building materials manufacturer | Industrials | £142M | -11% | £166M |
| 14 | MICROSOFT LIMITED UK technology and software subsidiary | Technology | £134M | -6% | £890M |
| 15 | ANGLO AMERICAN MARKETING LIMITED Commodity sales and marketing subsidiary | Industrials | £130M | -21% | £290M |
| 16 | J.P. MORGAN EUROPE LIMITED | Industrials | £122M | -14% | £159M |
| 17 | BRITISH LAND COMPANY PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY(THE) Commercial real estate investment trust | Industrials | £108M | -11% | £450M |
| 18 | UNIPER UK LIMITED UK electricity generation subsidiary | Utilities | £103M | -8% | £113M |
| 19 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY LIMITED UK automotive manufacturing subsidiary | Consumer Discretionary | £100M | -5% | £282M |
| 20 | BALFOUR BEATTY GROUP LIMITED Multinational infrastructure and construction group | Industrials | £91M | -24% | £198M |
| 21 | BALL BEVERAGE PACKAGING EUROPE LIMITED Aluminium beverage packaging manufacturer | Consumer Discretionary | £86M | -7% | £178M |
| 22 | ESSENDI UK HOTELS 1 LIMITED Accor-branded hotel operator | Consumer Discretionary | £84M | -24% | £96M |
| 23 | INTERCONTINENTAL HOTELS GROUP PLC | Consumer Discretionary | £83M | -8% | £797M |
| 24 | VWR INTERNATIONAL LTD Laboratory products and chemicals distributor | Consumer Discretionary | £79M | -9% | £98M |
| 25 | KYOWA KIRIN SERVICES LTD Pharmaceutical research and development subsidiary | Industrials | £77M | -19% | £142M |
All figures from each company's latest filed Companies House accounts; detailed filers only, with implausible outliers and scale artifacts excluded. Filed accounts lag the present by roughly 12–24 months, and group-vs-parent scope changes can move a figure between filings. Banks and insurers that don't report a turnover line are under-represented on the turnover-based boards.