Wincanton trading in line despite macro headwinds

Supply chain specialist Wincanton said in a trading update on Tuesday that it was continuing to make “good” operational and strategic progress, and was trading in line with current market expectations despite wider economic headwinds.

The London-listed firm said group revenue for the first quarter grew 11% year-on-year, or 9% excluding the impact of acquisitions.

Its board said growth had continued across all four of the company’s sectors, with each also building an “attractive pipeline” of opportunities.

The e-fulfilment sector increased revenue by 17% in the first quarter, including the Cygnia acquisition, with operations for the White Company starting on 10 July.

Excluding the impact of Cygnia, e-fulfilment still grew 1% despite the slowdown in online fulfilment.

Public and Industrial revenues were ahead 11%, which the firm said reflected the full year impact of its public sector work with HMRC, and further warehousing activity with infrastructure customers.

Grocery and consumer, and general merchandise, grew revenue by 8% and 13%, respectively.

“Backed by a strong balance sheet, the group continues to focus investment into robotics and automation,” the board said in its statement.

“Implementation of its £3m investment into robotic automation within the Cygnia business is progressing to plan with three customers going live during the third quarter of this year.”

“While it is mindful of the macroeconomic environment, the board remains confident that the combination of a robust business model, new contract wins, disciplined pricing and a strong balance sheet, means the group is on track to deliver full year results in line with current market expectations.”

As set out in its full-year results, a final dividend of 8p per share for the year ended 31 March would be paid on 5 August to shareholders on the register on 15 July, subject to approval at the annual general meeting being held on Tuesday.

At 1014 BST, shares in Wincanton were down 0.42% at 358.5p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.