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Babcock International Group

BAB.L
48
Engineering & Construction · Industrials
Price
1,104.50 GBp
-13.50 (-1.21%)
Market Cap
£5.44B
Exchange
London Stock Exchange
Winston Score
48
Winston is serious
Mixed quality — meaningful strengths and weaknesses.
Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through Mar 31, 2026
How the score breaks down
Quality
Mixed
Growth
Mixed
Cash Flow
Strong
Stability
Good
Valuation
Strong
Dividends
Weak

Winston Score History

The full picture

Babcock International is a UK-based engineering services company that works almost entirely for governments and militaries. Its core work includes maintaining warships, submarines, and military aircraft, as well as running nuclear facilities and training armed forces personnel. It is one of the largest defence support contractors in the UK, with the Royal Navy being its single most important customer.

Babcock makes money by winning long-term government contracts, which provide steady, predictable revenue over many years. It operates mainly in the UK but also has meaningful operations in Australia, Canada, France, and South Africa. Its moat comes from deep security clearances, specialist technical knowledge, and the high cost for governments to switch contractors mid-programme. The key risk is contract concentration — a large share of revenue depends on UK Ministry of Defence spending decisions, meaning any cuts to the defence budget or lost contract renewals could significantly hurt the business.

Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+8.9% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow revenue growth

EPS Growth

-63.2% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

R&D Spend

£0/ year

0.0% of revenue

Below sector average (4%)

Research and development spending

Insider Activity

6.7%ownership

Rising

Insiders increasing their stake — aligned with shareholders

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

£833M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

→ Burn rate stable

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth context

Babcock International Group is growing revenue at 9% year-over-year. The Winston Score measures business quality today — these growth metrics show what could matter tomorrow.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Share count broadly stable

0.0% over 4y

The share count has stayed roughly flat over this period — little dilution or buyback activity.

Diluted shares outstanding: 511.2M (2022) → 511.1M (2026)

Score breakdown

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Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
2.7%
Thin — 2.7% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
2.7%
Thin — 2.7% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
20.9%
Exceptional — 20.9% return on capital

ROIC between 15% and 25%. Every dollar invested in the business earns 15 to 25 cents back per year.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
+7.2%
Steady sales growth (+7.2% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
-11.5%
Earnings shrinking (-11.5% YoY)

Earnings per share down more than 10%. Either a bad year, or a real decline.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
5/8 quarters
Mixed — about half the quarters showed growth

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
196%
Turns 196% of profit into real cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
5.1%
Thin free cash flow (5.1%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
1.37
Elevated debt (1.37)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
5.22x
Adequate interest coverage (5.2x)

Interest coverage between 3 and 8. Profits cover interest several times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
26.0x
Growth-priced — P/E 26.0

P/E above the market average. People are paying up for expected growth.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
+10.2
GROWING
Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (26.0 → 15.8)

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
0.61%
Small dividend — 0.61% yield

Modest yield. The bulk of any return needs to come from price appreciation.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
-60.1%
Dividend cut (-60.1% YoY) — warning sign

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