CONSTRUCTION company Basil Read’s shares got a boost yesterday after the group forecast a return to profit this year after plunging to a loss last year. The company announced that its profit after tax for the year to December would be R160 million compared with a loss of R820.9m last year. Headline earnings are forecasted to be R1.20 a share this year from a loss per share of R3.63. This announcement pushed the group’s share price up by 12.34 percent to close at R2.64. Key factors used to arrive at these forecast profits included the fact that all loss-making contracts had been fully provided for in the 2014 financial year. Additional work totalling R700m was expected to be awarded and performed during the 2015 financial year. Total revenue was expected to be at least R5 billion with the minimum gross margins of 9 percent on average. Overheads were expected to be about 5.4 percent of revenue and net interest costs were expected to be R45m. The group said no shares would be issued during the current financial year. – Nompumelelo Magwaza