Company Announcement No. 1123
Strong Q2 2024 results with market share gains in all divisions
- The DSV Group achieved strong Q2 2024 results in line with expectations, with a decline in gross profit of 4.0% and a 12.4% decline in EBIT before special items compared to the same period last year. The financial results reflect a strong performance with further market share gains in all three divisions despite a competitive market.
- Sequentially, comparing Q2 2024 to Q1 2024, the DSV Group achieved nominal growth throughout Q2 2024 in EBIT before special items of 12.6% driven by increasing volumes and stabilisation of earnings per unit in Air & Sea.
- Solid adjusted free cash flow for Q2 2024 was impacted by higher net working capital due to increased activity and higher freight rates throughout the quarter.
- Based on our strong performance in the first half year and outlook for the second part of the year, we are narrowing the full-year 2024 EBIT guidance to DKK 15,500-17,000 million.
Jens H. Lund, Group CEO: “In a challenging environment, we delivered a strong financial performance in Q2 2024 driven by positive volume growth and stabilisation of gross profit per unit in the Air & Sea division. We continue to gain market share across all three divisions driven by our strengthened commercial platform. Furthermore, we have increased our productivity in all three divisions.”
Selected key figures and ratios for the period 1 January – 30 June 2024
| Q2 2024 | Q2 2023 | YTD 2024 | YTD 2023 | |
| Key figures (DKKm) | ||||
| Revenue | 41,157 | 37,727 | 79,497 | 78,681 |
| Gross profit | 10,841 | 11,331 | 21,106 | 22,722 |
| Operating profit (EBIT) before special items | 4,099 | 4,705 | 7,740 | 9,377 |
| Profit for the period | 2,712 | 3,375 | 5,105 | 6,662 |
| Adjusted earnings for the period | 2,790 | 3,448 | 5,253 | 6,788 |
| Adjusted free cash flow | 1,229 | 3,239 | 1,672 | 8,137 |
| Ratios | ||||
| Conversion ratio | 37.8% | 41.5% | 36.7% | 41.3% |
| Diluted adjusted earnings per share of DKK 1 for the last 12 months | 52.7 | 69.8 |
Performance in Q2 2024
In a challenging environment, DSV demonstrated a strong financial performance characterised by an uptake in volumes, market share gains across all three divisions and solid cash flow generation. On the back of this performance, we are narrowing our full-year guidance to DKK 15,500-17,000 million, and we launch a new share buyback programme of DKK 1,500 million.
Air & Sea continued to see a stabilisation of gross profit per unit during Q2 2024, indicating a steady operational performance in a competitive and fluctuating market. While the situation in the Red Sea has not yet materialised in our financial results, it is expected to have a slightly positive impact in the second half of 2024.
Road continued to deliver satisfactory results in a competitive market with stable gross profit and a 4.4% increase in EBIT before special items for Q2 2024 compared to the same period last year. The division has further strengthened the network by establishing control towers and expanding the European groupage network in close collaboration with the other divisions of the Group.
Solutions saw a gross profit increase of 8.1% and an increase in EBIT before special items of 6.8% for Q2 2024 compared to the same period last year. Despite temporary low utilisation rates at new sites, the Solutions division delivered a strong performance owing to an increase in order lines driven by new wins.
We are well positioned for growth in an ever-changing market and maintain our focus on having industry leading margins, which is a testament to the company’s competitive culture and operational efficiency. M&A remains a core pillar in DSV, and we believe that the combination of organic and inorganic growth will create a stronger DSV going forward.
We consistently assess our operations to optimise productivity and remain flexible and competitive to meet market demand, and we continuously invest in digital and physical infrastructure that drives productivity up. In order to leverage on these investments, we have launched a company-wide operational efficiency initiative in Q2. The gains from these initiatives are expected to materialise gradually over the coming quarters starting in Q3 and with a full-year impact in 2025 in EBIT before special items of approximately DKK 750 million.
Outlook for 2024
Based on our performance in the first six months of 2024 and our expectations for the rest of the year, we are narrowing the full-year outlook for 2024 as follows:
- EBIT before special items is expected to be in the range of DKK 15,500-17,000 million (previously DKK 15,000-17,000 million).
- The effective tax rate is expected to be approximately 24%.
- One-off costs (special items) are expected to be in the level of DKK 650 million in 2024.
Share buyback
A separate company announcement about a new share buyback programme of DKK 1,500 million will be issued today. The programme starts 24 July 2024 and will run until 22 October 2024.
Contacts
Investor Relations: Sebastian Rosborg, tel. +45 43 20 33 87, sebastian.rosborg@dsv.com
Media contact: Jonatan Rying Larsen, tel. +45 25 41 77 37, press@dsv.com
Yours sincerely,
DSV A/S
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