CRH annual profits rise amid good demand

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased 16% to $5.35bn, with sales up 12% from 2020 to $31bn. Pre-tax profit for 2021 was $3.3bn, up from $1.7bn the previous year.

The company’s board is recommending a final dividend of 98 cents per share, which would result in a total dividend for the year of 121 cents, up 5% on 2020.

CRH said 2021 was "another year of growth" for the company, with positive underlying momentum in North America and Europe resulting in good demand in both regions.

Americas Materials benefited from increased construction activity during the year due to strong residential demand in North America. Meanwhile, Europe Materials saw good volume growth and pricing progress against a prior year comparative which was heavily impacted by pandemic restrictions, CRH said.

Chief executive Albert Manifold said: "Our 2021 performance reflects the outstanding commitment and resilience of our people as well as the benefits of our integrated, customer-focused business strategy. Despite an inflationary input cost environment, we expanded our margins and delivered good growth in profits, returns and cash generation.

"This further underpins our strong and flexible balance sheet, providing us with significant opportunities for future growth and value creation. While the demand backdrop remains favourable across our markets, there are a number of challenges and uncertainties which we must continue to manage carefully as we look to deliver further value for our shareholders in the year ahead."

Late on Wednesday, CRH joined the growing list of companies deciding to exit Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine.