Vivo Energy plc (LON:VVO), the leading pan-African retailer and distributor of Shell and Engen-branded fuels and lubricants, has provided the following trading update ahead of the release of 2020 Full Year results on Wednesday, 3 March 2021.
Trading across the group continued to be positive in Q4, driven by the ongoing recovery in the Retail segment, as mobility restrictions across our host countries remained limited. This continued the momentum built in Q3 and led to full year fuel volumes of 9.6 billion litres, 7% below the previous year. Performance was also supported by the unit margin tailwinds experienced in Q3 continuing through the final quarter. As a result, we now expect that the Group’s full year Adjusted EBITDA, subject to the finalisation of the year-end closing process, any subsequent events and the completion of the audit, will be above the top end of the range of current market expectations of $331 million – 354 million*, with H2 performance broadly in line with H2 19.
Due to the positive performance, we intend, subject to a resolution of the Board, to recommend to shareholders the payment of a dividend of 3.8 cents per share ($48 million) in respect of 2020. This is in line with our stated progressive dividend policy and equal to the declared 2019 Full Year dividend of 3.8 cents, despite the impacts of COVID-19 on the business during the year.
Commenting on the trading update, Christian Chammas, CEO said:
“The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant adverse impact on our business in the first half of 2020. Since then the group has recovered strongly, with the second half in line with the comparable period in 2019, and this positive performance has continued into 2021. As a result, we are cautiously optimistic, and believe that we are well positioned for the future due to our leading positions in structural growth markets, together with our diversified and resilient business model. This is reflected in our commitment to shareholder returns through our progressive dividend policy. We look forward to providing a further update with our full year results on 3 March.”
* Full year 2020 consensus is published on Vivo Energy plc’s website (www.vivoenergy.com) and consists of estimates published in the last four months.
