Watchdog investigates Mitie profit warning

THE City watchdog is probing struggling outsourcing firm Mitie over the timing and content of a profit warning.

The Financial Conduct Authority is looking into an alert issued on September 19 last year when Mitie said it expected earnings for the first half of the year to be ‘significantly lower’ than the year before.

The warning, blamed on factors including the introduction of National Living Wage, public sector cuts and Brexit uncertainty, sent shares down 29pc and chief executive Ruby McGregor-Smith quit the following month.

The FCA said it is investigating the ‘timeliness’ of the warning and the ‘manner of preparation and content’ of results for the period ending March 31, 2016. McGregor-Smith was made a Tory peer by David Cameron before the outlook at Mitie turned sour.

Phil Bentley, who replaced her, launched an external review of the firm’s accounting policies, which ended with write-downs totalling between £40-£50m.

In its full-year results in June, Mitie said it had taken a hit of £88.3m as it reported a pre-tax loss of £58.2m for the full year.