Bunzl shares fell 2.4% to 3,040p in early morning trading on Tuesday despite a 16.1% revenue growth to £5.6 billion in HY1 2022 against £4.8 billion in HY1 2022.
Bunzl attributed its revenue increase to product cost inflation and continued recovery in its base business, along with growth from acquisitions.
The firm announced six acquisitions in the year-to-date, with a complete committed spend in excess of £225 million.
The global distribution company reported a 12.2% rise in adjusted operating profit to £411 million from £366 million in the previous year, alongside an adjusted pre-tax profit climb of 12.4% to £380.5 million compared to £338.4 million.
Bunzl announced a statutory operating profit increase of 7.7% to £327.5 million against £304.1 million, and a pre-tax profit rise of 7.6% to £296.6 million compared to £275.7 million.
“Over the period, our teams have been agile in navigating substantial inflation and supply chain disruption, while supporting recovery in the base business and continuing to provide our customers with essential products and services that are crucial to their operations. Our good performance has also been enabled by the depth and flexibility of our global supply chains,” said Bunzl CEO Frank van Zanten.
“We remain focused on continuing to execute our long-term compounding growth strategy. So far this year we have announced six acquisitions and have an active pipeline with good balance sheet headroom. We believe the merits of joining Bunzl have been amplified over the last few years, supporting our long-term strategic commitment to investing in businesses that drive growth and returns for the Group.”
“While mindful of the economic outlook, I believe our talented teams, the inherent resilience of our business model and diversification of our portfolio across sectors and regions, as well as our consistent focus on our strategic priorities, will continue to support the Group’s performance and maintain our strong track record of value creation.”
Bunzl confirmed an adjusted EPS of growth of 10.3% to 85.7p from 77.7p, and a basic EPS increase of 4.6% to 66.2p against 63.3p year-on-year.
Bunzl recommended an interim dividend hike of 6.8% to 17.3p compared to 16.2p the year before.
