Bunzl (BNZL)

Sector:

Retailers

Index:

FTSE 100

3,468.00p
   
  • Change Today:
      68.00p
  • 52 Week High: 3,714.00
  • 52 Week Low: 2,898.00
  • Currency: UK Pounds
  • Shares Issued: 333.48m
  • Volume: 562,794
  • Market Cap: £11,565m
  • RiskGrade: 114
  • Beta: 0.71

Bunzl upgrades full-year profit guidance

By Josh White

Date: Thursday 27 Jun 2024

LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Bunzl upgraded its profit guidance for the year on Thursday, citing improved margin performance and successful acquisitions.
The FTSE 100 company said it expected robust revenue growth for 2024, buoyed by acquisitions completed earlier in the year, despite a slight decline in underlying revenue.

For the first half, Bunzl anticipated a year-on-year revenue decrease of 3% to 4% at actual exchange rates, and a 0% to 1% decline at constant exchange rates.

Underlying revenue, which accounts for organic growth adjusted for trading days, was expected to fall by approximately 5%.

The decline was put down to volume reductions and deflation in the US market.

However, the group projects a strong improvement in operating margins compared to the first half of 2023, leading to substantial adjusted operating profit growth at constant exchange rates.

In North America, the expected revenue decline in the first half is attributed to reduced volumes in the US foodservice redistribution business and the impact of transitioning customer-specific inventory in the US retail sector, alongside deflationary pressures.

Despite the challenges, second-quarter revenue trends in North America were anticipated to improve over the first quarter, with recovering volumes.

Continental Europe and the UK and Ireland were forecast to see a moderate decline in underlying revenue, while the rest of the world was expected to experience some growth.

Notably, North America was set to achieve good margin growth, and the UK and Ireland, along with the rest of the world, were poised for very strong margin growth, driven by acquisitions and effective margin management.

Bunzl also noted its recent strategic acquisitions, noting that in April, it signed an agreement to acquire RCL Implantes, a Brazilian distributor of surgical and medical devices, which generated revenue of BRL 112 million (£18m) in 2023.

The acquisition, pending final clearance, was set to enhance Bunzl's presence in the Brazilian market.

In June, Bunzl completed the acquisition of Clean Spot, a Canadian distributor of cleaning and hygiene products, which recorded revenue of CAD 7m (£4m) in 2023.

"Our agile and entrepreneurial teams continue to deliver robust profit growth," said chief executive officer Frank van Zanten.

"I am delighted with the ongoing successful margin management, including increasing penetration of own brands, demonstrated across the group, allowing us to upgrade our full year profit outlook today."

Van Zanten said he was also pleased to welcome two more businesses to Bunzl, taking its total committed spend on acquisitions to around £600m so far this year.

"After an excellent start to the year for acquisitions, we maintain a strong balance sheet, providing us with significant optionality to continue to self-fund value-accretive acquisitions and our pipeline remains active."

At 0845 BST, shares in Bunzl were up 0.59% at 2,056p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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Note 1: Prices and trades are provided by Digital Look Corporate Solutions and are delayed by at least 15 minutes.

Note 2: RiskGrade figures are provided by RiskMetrics.

 

Bunzl Market Data

Currency UK Pounds
Share Price 3,468.00p
Change Today 68.00p
% Change 2.00 %
52 Week High 3,714.00
52 Week Low 2,898.00
Volume 562,794
Shares Issued 333.48m
Market Cap £11,565m
Beta 0.71
RiskGrade 114

Bunzl Star Ratings

Compare performance with the sector and the market.
more star ratings
Key: vs Market vs Sector
Value
96.67% below the market average96.67% below the market average96.67% below the market average96.67% below the market average96.67% below the market average
100% below the sector average100% below the sector average100% below the sector average100% below the sector average100% below the sector average
Price Trend
67.95% above the market average67.95% above the market average67.95% above the market average67.95% above the market average67.95% above the market average
38.46% above the sector average38.46% above the sector average38.46% above the sector average38.46% above the sector average38.46% above the sector average
Income
64.77% below the market average64.77% below the market average64.77% below the market average64.77% below the market average64.77% below the market average
100% below the sector average100% below the sector average100% below the sector average100% below the sector average100% below the sector average
Growth
41.44% below the market average41.44% below the market average41.44% below the market average41.44% below the market average41.44% below the market average
Sector averageSector averageSector averageSector averageSector average

What The Brokers Say

Strong Buy 2
Buy 2
Neutral 8
Sell 4
Strong Sell 2
Total 18
neutral
Broker recommendations should not be taken as investment advice, and are provided by the authorised brokers listed on this page.

Bunzl Dividends

  Latest Previous
  Interim Final
Ex-Div 14-Nov-24 16-May-24
Paid 03-Jan-25 02-Jul-24
Amount 20.10p 50.10p

Trades for 21-Nov-2024

Time Volume / Share Price
16:29 238 @ 3,460.00p
16:29 81 @ 3,460.00p
16:29 4 @ 3,458.00p
16:29 68 @ 3,460.00p
16:29 90 @ 3,460.00p

Bunzl Key Personnel

CFO Richard Howes
Chair Peter Ventress

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