No more big deals, says Atkins as it looks to niche areas

WS Atkins, which helps design big building projects such as London's 2012 Olympics, bought US engineering design firm PBSJ Corp for $280m in October, filling a gap in its geographic coverage and securing a new area of growth.

"We want to make clear that the US acquisition was an exception," finance director Heath Drewett said.

He added: "We see ourselves acquiring small businesses taking us into new geographies within regions."

Mr Drewett said the company was "not optimistic on a global recovery" and would focus on identifying areas where it saw opportunities.

Its pre-tax profit rose to 41.7m in the six months to end-September, on revenue down 5.3 per cent to 664m.

Broker Evolution Securities said the results were marginally ahead of its operating profit expectations of 46.1m, at 48.3m, and confirmed its "reduce" recommendation.

"We remain cautious on the near term outlook for infrastructure."

The company said it benefited from reducing staff numbers by 8.6 per cent compared to the same period last year, after it anticipated the difficult market conditions caused by government spending cuts.

"The scale, breadth and depth of our technical skills and our more balanced geographic footprint mean we are well positioned for future growth," chief executive Keith Clarke said.

Shares in WS Atkins, which have fallen nine per cent in the last month, closed at 697.5p on Wednesday valuing the company at 714m.

The company has offices in Leeds, Sheffield and York.