24th Nov 2015 07:55
LONDON (Alliance News) - Compass Group PLC on Tuesday said its pretax profit edged up in the first half despite the group booking restructuring costs, as revenue increased thanks to a strong performance in North America.
The FTSE 100-listed catering services and outsourcing company said its pretax profit for the year to the end of September was GBP1.16 billion, up from GBP1.14 billion a year earlier, as restructuring costs restrained its bottom line.
Revenue for the period was GBP17.6 billion, up from GBP16.86 billion, driven by strong growth in Compass's North American business, where sales rose 7.9%. Europe and Japan revenue grew 1.9% over the year, but accelerated to nearly 3.0% in the second half, Compass said, while its emerging markets business delivered robust sales growth to offset a slowdown faced in the Australian market.
Underlying margins for the group as a whole improved 10 basis points for the full year before restructuring costs. Compass said its restructuring plan is on track to deliver the operational improvements targeted.
Compass said its expectations for 2016 are unchanged and said it will pay a final dividend of 19.6 pence per share, taking its total dividend for the year up to 29.4p, a 10% rise year-on-year.
"Compass has had another strong year. North America continues to deliver excellent growth. Our business in Europe & Japan is enjoying a strong recovery as we are rewarded for our investment to accelerate growth in the region. Our Fast Growing & Emerging region continues to perform well despite lower volumes and pricing pressures in the Offshore & Remote sector, and in some emerging markets," said Richard Cousins, Compass's chief executive.
"In the longer term, we remain excited about the significant structural growth opportunities globally and the potential for further revenue growth, margin improvement, as well as continued returns to shareholders through dividends and ongoing share buybacks," he added.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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