Of the 23 S&P 500 companies that have reported earnings for their most recent quarter to date, eight reportedly discussed Brexit or the UK referendum during their earnings calls. Of the 13 that have reported earnings after the vote announcement on June 23rd, six discussed Brexit or the UK referendum during their calls, as follows:
(i) Paychex and Constellation Brands said they expected to see little to no impact from the vote.
(ii) Acuity Brands and Walgreens Boots Alliance said that the vote created “uncertainty” and “volatility” in global markets, but didn't discuss a specific negative impact on their businesses going forward.
(iii) Carnival and McCormick & Company reported that the Brexit vote created unfavorable currency exchange rates, which would have a negative impact on their future earnings.
In the meantime, based on a poll conducted by CEB on June 28th of more than 600 corporate executives, 22% reported being "very unprepared" for the Brexit vote (i.e., the vote outcome), and 37% were "relatively unprepared." Only 7% believed their companies were "highly prepared":
Respondents reported their top three business exposure concerns about the implications as: (i) legal or compliance implications (27%), (ii) workforce planning (i.e., asking what skills are needed in which areas of the business and currently what nationality of staff hold those roles) (18%), and (iii) supply chain implications (13%) - as depicted here:
Access numerous additional resources on our Brexit topical page.