Intertek Group Plc (LON:ITRK), today announced 2018 final result
2018 Year Highlights
· Revenue growth: +4.7% at constant currency rates, +1.2% at actual rates
· Good organic revenue growth of +3.7% at constant rates: Products +5.2%, Trade +2.2%, Resources +0.3%
· Record adjusted operating margin of 17.2%: +40bps at constant rates, +30bps at actual rates
· Adjusted operating profit of £482m: +6.9% at constant rates, +3.0% at actual rates
· Adjusted diluted EPS: +7.7% at constant rates, +3.5% at actual rates
· Statutory net profit after tax of £305.2m: +3.8% at constant rates, -0.4% at actual rates
· Free cash flow of £350.6m, +2.6% year on year driven by strong cash conversion
· Full year dividend per share of 99.1p, an increase of 39%
· Acquisitions in high growth and high margin sectors
A video outlining the Full Year Results is available on the Group’s website – http://www.intertek.com/
André Lacroix: Chief Executive Officer statement
“Intertek is going from strength to strength, making consistent progress on strategy and performance. We are benefitting from higher demand from our customers for our global Total Quality Assurance solutions in our Products, Trade and Resources divisions.
In 2018, we have seen revenue growth acceleration with 3.7% organic revenue growth at constant rates with continuing robust performance in our Products division, solid performance in Trade and a performance improvement in Resources. Our recent acquisitions in high margin and high growth areas performed well.
The Group has a high margin and highly cash generative earnings model. In 2018, we made continued progress on margin, profitability and free cash flow, with a record margin of 17.2% up 40bps, EPS growth of 7.7% and a cash conversion of 126%. In line with our new dividend policy, that targets a payout ratio of circa 50%, we have announced a full year dividend of 99.1p, an increase of 39%.
We expect to deliver good organic revenue growth performance at constant currency in 2019, with moderate Group margin expansion and strong cash generation.
Our ‘5×5’ differentiated strategy for growth will continue to move the centre of gravity of our portfolio towards the attractive growth and margin opportunities in the industry based on a disciplined approach to revenue, margin, portfolio and cash performance management, and an accretive disciplined capital allocation to deliver sustainable returns for our shareholders.
Given the growing complexity faced by global corporations, higher quality and sustainability expectations from consumers and increased regulatory demand, Intertek’s Total Quality Assurance (TQA) services are mission-critical for clients to operate safely. We are uniquely positioned to seize these exciting growth opportunities and with our Total Quality Assurance differentiated value proposition, we provide our clients with a superior customer service based on the depth and breadth of our technical expertise, our global network of 1,000+ state-of-the-art facilities in over 100 countries, our industry leading Assurance, Testing, Inspection and Certification solutions, and our customer-centric culture fueled by our passionate colleagues around the world.”
