KPMG named top listed company auditor

KPMG has retained its position as the listed company auditor, according to the latest Adviser Rankings.

According to its third quarter guide, KPMG retains first position for total stock market clients after it gained six new clients to reach 406 in total. Mazars moved up to 13^th position after a gain of four.

KPMG also retained its position as the leading AIM auditor with 152 clients, while PwC continues to dominate the FTSE 250 market with 72 clients, after a gain of five.

During the first two quarters of 2016, a handful of high-profile changes to the audit profile of the FTSE 250 took place. British engineering and design consultancy, WS Atkins, appointed KPMG as its auditor for the financial year ending 31 March 2018.

PwC secured audit duties for Glasgow-based FTSE 250 engineering firm Weir Group, with initial responsibility for the company’s statements for the financial year commencing 2 January 2016.

Within the consumer goods sector, BDO moved up into third position, just in front of Deloitte, which also crept up a single rung on the ladder. There were also numeric gains for lead auditor PwC and second placed KPMG.

Those two leading roles were reversed in consumer services where KPMG managed to improve its advantage at the head of the rankings over PwC, though both advisers pulled in a number of fresh mandates through the quarter. Meanwhile, numbers for EY and BDO were also on the rise.

Placings were unaltered within the financials rankings, but there were numeric improvements for EY, Deloitte, RSM and Mazars. Earlier this month, it was reported that Treasury officials and a number of business lobby groups including the Confederation of British Industry and the British Bankers’ Association have been meeting to determine the value of the single market and whether so-called ‘passporting’ rights – which allow UK-based banks to set up branches in any part of the European Economic Area – are worth pursuing.

PwC, KPMG and Grant Thornton achieved net gains in the health care space, but there were no significant changes to the table.

Mazars has debuted in the wider industrials sector, moving straight up into 10th place, and there were gains for Haysmacintyre and Grant Thornton. Meanwhile, Mazars has completed its acquisition of financial modelling, consultancy and training provider, Corality Financial.

EY has taken the lead in the oil and gas sector, with PwC moving back into the bronze medal position. There were client gains for Jeffreys Henry, which propelled the adviser up two places into a share of ninth with Chapman Davis and UHY Hacker Young.

Grant Thornton leads the way in the technology sector, while Mazars was again moving up through the rankings, along with CCW and Nexia Smith & Williamson. Among the changes announced through the quarter, Spectris intends to appoint Deloitte as its auditor following a comprehensive tender process. The appointment will be effective for the 31 December 2017 year-end.