Financial Report for six months ended 30 June 2024 

Full year profit upgrade, record year for acquisitions and three-year capital allocation commitment with an initial £250 million share buyback

Bunzl plc, the specialist international distribution and services Group, today publishes its financial report for the six months ended 30 June 2024.

Highlights include:

• Revenue declined by 0.4% at constant exchange rates*; with underlying revenue trends improving in the second quarter,with further improvement in July and August

• Adjusted operating profit* increased by 7.4% at constant exchange rates, reported operating profit declined by 2.8%

• Strong increase in operating margin* from 7.4% to 8.0%

• Adjusted earnings per share* increased by 6.2% at constant exchange rates, reported basic earnings per share declined by 16.4%, largely due to the currency translation driven loss related to the disposal of our business in Argentina

• Continued strong free cash flow* driven by excellent cash conversion of 100%

• Interim dividend per share grew by 10.4%, extending 31 consecutive years of annual dividend growth. Expected dividend cover in 2024 of 2.65 times, with further normalisation in 2025

• Seven acquisitions announced August year-to-date, including PowerVac announced today; annual committed acquisition spend so far this year is already over £650 million

• 2024 outlook: adjusted operating profit guidance upgraded, driven by improved margin performance and acquisitions

• Commitment to allocate c.£700 million per annum primarily towards value-accretive acquisitions and, if required, return of capital, in each of the three years ending 31 December 2027

• Recognising the Group's strong balance sheet, the Board has today announced an initial £250 million share buyback that will commence with immediate effect, to be completed no later than 3 March 2025. The Board expects to announce a further share buyback at its 2024 preliminary results of c.£200 million

Commenting on today’s results, Frank van Zanten, Chief Executive Officer of Bunzl, said:

“I am very pleased with the performance of the Group during the first half of 2024, with strong growth in adjusted operating profit for the period. We have significantly increased the Group’s operating margin in recent years to 8%, driven by good margin management, including increased own brand penetration, and the impact of recently acquired businesses. In 2024 our committed acquisition spend is already at a record high of over £650 million. Consistent strong performance means Bunzl has generated around £2.9bn of free cash flow between 2019 and 2023, significantly strengthening our balance sheet. Despite a material increase in the amount of capital we have allocated towards selffunding value-accretive acquisitions, our consistently strong cash generation means that leverage has remained below our target range for some time. Our acquisition pipeline remains active and our runway of opportunity is substantial. Today the Group is in an excellent position to pursue our pipeline of value-accretive acquisitions within the very large and fragmented global markets that we operate in, and also return excess cash to shareholders. We are committing to steadily return leverage to our target range by the end of 2027, and therefore announce a substantial share buyback that will commence with immediate effect.

I remain confident that the resilience of our business model, the diversification of our portfolio across sectors and regions, and the consistent focus on our strategic priorities will continue to support the Group’s performance and maintain our strong track record of value creation.”

* Alternative performance measure (see Note 2).

Enquiries:

Note: A live webcast of today’s presentation to analysts will be available on www.bunzl.com, commencing at 9.30 am. 

HALF YEARLY FINANCIAL REPORT FOR SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2023