Rolls-Royce stock drops on biggest ever full-year loss
Drop comes as company is under investigation for corruption offences
By Lisa Botter
Rolls-Royce stock dropped in the first hour of trading on Tuesday after it confirmed its biggest even loss for the full year.
The airplane engine manufacturer recorded a pre-tax loss of £4.6 billion (US$5.7 billion) for 2016 after booking a £671 million (US$841 million) settlement for corruption claims.
Rolls-Royce shares were down 2.16 per cent to change hands at 725.50 pence at 8:15 am GMT, the stock lost more than 3 per cent on opening. Shares have lost 0.8 per cent in the past three months.
Underlying profit before tax was down 49 per cent to £813 million (US$1 billion), this was less than the £687 million (US$860 million)expected by analysts.
The engineering giant reported an unexpected 9 per cent increase in revenue to £15 billion (US18.8 billion). However, underlying revenue, which exclude benefits from foreign exchange, came in at £13.4 billion (US$16.8 billion), down about 2 per cent due in large part to declines in its marine business.