Biffa PLC scraps final dividend as it predicts coronavirus will cause

() has become the latest company to scrap its final dividend after warning the coronavirus outbreak is expected to cause “significant disruption” to its operations.

The waste management firm said while the outbreak was not expected to have a material impact on its results for the year ended 27 March, it is forecasting a “significant reduction in demand” going forward and that it is “extremely difficult to predict with any accuracy” the impact of the pandemic on its 2021 financial year.

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As a result, Biffa said it will not be providing guidance for the coming year at this time, adding that alongside the scrapping of the dividend it is also deferring “all non-essential and uncommitted” capital expenditure and reviewing its operating cost base.

“The board is confident that the combination of available liquidity, coupled with the above mitigation actions will enable the group to shoulder this downturn in the near term and that going forward the group will then be able to progress its growth strategy over the medium term”, Biffa said.

The shares fell 4.4% to 218p in early trading on Wednesday.