Retailer and forecourt operator Applegreen has reported bumper half year results, boosted by its acquisition last year of British motorway services operator Welcome Break.
Over the six months ended 30 June, the Irish group’s total revenue increased by 73% to €1.5bn with adjusted EBITDA jumping 204% to €58.9m. Even excluding Welcome Break, the group’s earnings climbed 37% to €26.5m, aided by strong like-for-like sales growth in fuel and retail.
In the Republic of Ireland, Applegreen’s revenue increased by 14.1% with gross profit up by 11.8%. Like-for-like food and store sales and gross profit increased by 3.4% and 5.3% respectively, driven by organic growth in its existing food outlets. During the period, it expanded its Irish estate by six sites which included one service area site, one petrol filling station site and four dealer sites.
In the UK, the inclusion of the Welcome Break resulted in a 127.8% increase in revenues and 470.9% jump in gross profit. On a like-for-like basis (excluding Welcome Break), total UK revenue grew by 3.6% and gross profit increased by 9.6%. However, total non-fuel sales were down 1.4%, due to strong comparators that benefited from good early summer weather and the football World Cup. Non-fuel gross profit grew by 1.5% which the group stated reflected the mix being weighted more towards food in 2019.
Applegreen’s Chief Executive Bob Etchingham stated that he was “very pleased” with the trading performance.
“Like-for-like revenue and profits from the underlying Applegreen estate, excluding Welcome Break, continued to show strong growth, whilst significant progress was made on the integration of the Welcome Break business acquired in the UK in the fourth quarter last year,” he said.
“The delivery of anticipated synergy benefits is firmly on track and we see the opportunity for greater savings than originally expected going forward.”
In terms of outlook, the company said the underlying Applegreen business “continues to grow at a satisfactory rate”, adding: “Whilst there is currently no certainty around the timing and impact of Brexit, the resilient nature of our business and our self help initiatives should help protect us from potential downsides.
“We therefore remain confident in the prospects for the business for 2019 and beyond.”
