DCC third-quarter profit rises in line with forecasts

The Dublin-based company said it had a good trading performance in the three months to the end of December, helped by acquisitions. DCC predicted operating profit would show a strong increase in the year to the end of March, in line with market expectations despite currency pressures and higher wholesale energy costs.

The liquid petroleum gas business traded "robustly" as demand increased though sectors such as hospitality and leisure were affected by continuing pandemic restrictions. The retail and oil division, which includes unmanned petrol stations, registered strong profit growth driven by the UK and Ireland.

Healthcare had good growth as a strong performance from DCC Vital, which includes pharmacy and primary care services. The technology division reported very strong growth in North America and Europe that was offset by weak performance in the UK caused by labour, logistics and product shortages.

"DCC continues to expect that the year ending 31 March 2022 will be another year of strong operating profit growth, in line with current market consensus expectations, notwithstanding the adverse impact of currency translation and the significant increase in the wholesale cost of energy products," the company said.

Shares of DCC fell 1.2% to £63.80 at 08:13 GMT.