Compass Group upgrades FY profit guidance, acquires Dutch food services business

(Sharecast News) - Food services business Compass Group upgraded FY25 profit guidance on Tuesday on the back of strong organic growth and a better-than-expected M&A performance. Compass said it had delivered "another strong performance" in Q3, with organic revenues growing 8.6% in the quarter and 8.5% for the year to date. Both regions performed well, with North America delivering "strong growth" across all sectors.

The FTSE 100-listed group said net new business growth continued in the middle of its 4-5% target range, supported by strong client retention of over 96%.

Volume growth in both regions was also said to have "remained positive", with North America particularly strong as it benefited from favourable hospitality events. Growth in its international division was "slightly lower compared to Q2", due to mobilisation timings.

"We are pleased with our third quarter performance with continued strong organic revenue growth and M&A performing better than expected," said Compass.

"As a result, we are upgrading our 2025 guidance. We now expect constant currency underlying operating profit growth to be towards 11%, driven by organic revenue growth above 8% and ongoing margin progression."

Compass Group also announced it has agreed to acquire Vermaat Groep, a leading premium food services business in Europe, for approximately €1.5bn. Compass noted that Vermaat was a market leader in the Netherlands, with a growing presence in Germany and France, all of which were among the firm's top ten markets.

Vermaat was said to be on track to generate sales of roughly €700.0m in FY25, with a double-digit operating margin. In the first full year of ownership, Vermaat was expected to be margin and EPS accretive to Compass.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com