Moneysupermarket expects revenue to grow after final quarter sales surge

Price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com expects revenue to increase 12% for the year, aided by a 20% growth in the final quarter of 2016.

The FTSE 250 company expects revenue to grow 12% to £316m and adjusted operating profit by 8% to about £108m, for the year ended 31 December.

This was largely due to a 20% rise in revenue in the final quarter to £73.8 year-on-year.

Revenue for the year in the home services business jumped 36% to £51m, the insurance business ticked higher by 11% to £155.2m and the money business rose by 9% to £78.9m.

Its sister site MoneySavingExpert.com generated a 20% rise in revenue to £36.8m, but TravelSupermarket.com fell 9% to £22.3m. The company said that a turnaround for the website is “on plan”.

Even though interest rate cuts have weakened both savings and current account switching, the core money business, credit cards and unsecured personal loans delivered “good growth”.

Outgoing chief executive Peter Plumb said: "We helped nearly 7m families save an estimated £1.8bn on their household bills last year. Our technology, data and brand investment programmes are positioning the group to continue to lead the market and help more families save money across a growing range of products in the years ahead.''

The company is getting a new chief executive in the spring, with Mark Lewis starting on 10 April, after his appointment as executive director on 13 March.

Shares in Moneysupermarket surged 9% to 331.9p in early trading on Thursday, their highest level since the Brexit vote.