Catering giant Compass raises guidance following contracts at Kew and Royal Opera House
Catering giant Compass Group has raised its profit guidance following a strong performance in the six months to the end of March.
The firm, which provides catering services for universities and offices, said it would up its guidance by 15 per cent.
It comes as the hospitality group reported a 18.7 per cent increase year-on-year in operating profit to $1.4bn (£1.1bn) in the half year.
Revenue increased by 11.2 per cent, which the business said reflected “the strong trading performance”.
Earlier this year, Compass announced plans for a multi-million pound takeover of competitor CH&Co, the go-to hospitality provider for Kew Gardens and the Royal Opera House.
CH&Co, which also counts as clients the Royal Academy of Arts, the Southbank Centre and Hampton Court Palace, had been owned by private equity firm Equistone since 2019.
The deal completed last month costing £373m (£296m).
Dominic Blakemore, group chief executive, Compass Group said: “The Group has delivered a strong set of results, with balanced double-digit organic revenue growth and good underlying operating margin progression across all regions, leading to underlying operating profit growth of 19 per cent on a constant-currency basis.
“Europe is building a strong track record of growth, having benefited from investment and best practice sharing. We have completed the acquisitions of HOFMANN in Germany and CH&CO in the UK and Ireland increasing operational flexibility as well as further strengthening our unique sectorised approach to the market.
He added: “Our results are driving strong cash generation which in turn gives us the flexibility to invest capital back in the business through capex and strategic in-fill M&A, to support future growth through sectorisation and flexible operating models, both of which generate excellent returns.”