Moneysupermarket hit by energy switching dip

The boss of Moneysupermarket.com, based near Chester, has hailed the company’s efforts to save its customers more than £1bn but warned that full year adjusted operating profit will be at the lower end of the consensus range.

Although the energy switching sector cooled, turnover for the six months to June topped £165m, up 5% on last year’s half-year figure of £157.6m.

Profit after tax grew 6% to just above £40m (H1 2016: £37.9m).

Chief executive Mark Lewis said: “We’ve helped more people take control of their household bills than ever before, saving our customers £1.1bn in the first half of this year.”

However, he admitted that the lack of blockbuster energy deals from providers meant that fewer people were switching providers.

“Our focus now is on using our tech investment to find new ways to help our customers, particularly on mobiles, and improving our everyday energy switching,” he said.

Shares plunged 10% on the news.