Financial performance
REVENUE
£11.4bn
2022: £8.1bn²
2023 Performance:
The Group delivered £11.4bn of revenue, up 12% organically (excluding currency effects and net M&A) and up 41% reported versus prior year. This was driven by volume growth as supply continued to normalise, with some positive pricing impact, and contribution of M&A.
OPERATING MARGIN
5.8%
2022: 5.1%²
2023 Performance:
Operating margin is 5.8%, up 70bps versus 2022. This is owing to organic topline growth, the contribution of M&A, Derco synergies and some operating leverage. One off items include a net benefit of property profit of £14m.
PROFIT BEFORE TAX AND ADJUSTING ITEMS
£502m
2022: £373m²
2023 Performance:
In 2023 this increased 35% to £502m, reflecting the contribution from acquisitions, strong improvement in revenue and operating profit.
FREE CASH FLOW
£498m
2022: £380m²
2023 Performance:
The Group delivered free cash flow (FCF) of £498m, an increase of 31% on 2022 and representing a conversion of operating profit of 74%.
RETURN ON CAPITAL EMPLOYED
26%
2022: 41%²
2023 Performance:
Adjusted ROCE for the period was 26%, compared to 41% in 2022, with the decrease driven by the dilutionary effect of acquisitions, and is aligned with our historic guidance of approximately 25%.
1 Alternative performance measure, see page 200 in the 2023 Annual Report.
2 Restated, page 26 in the 2023 Annual Report.