Travel and insurance sectors drive Moneysupermarket.com interims
Travel and insurance were, once again, the main drivers for price comparison website, Moneysupermarket.com, which revealed revenue and profit rises as well as a three percent hike in its dividend for the six months to June 30, 2023.
Revenues of £213.8m were up on the previous year’s £193.2m, while a pre-tax profit of £53.3m compared with £42.1m a year ago.
The board of the Ewloe-based business, near Chester, has recommended a return to dividend growth with a three per cent increase to the interim dividend to 3.2p per share, which it said reflects the ongoing good cash conversion of the business, strong balance sheet and the board’s confidence in the future prospects of the group.
Net debt fell 21% during the reporting period, from £69.1m in 2022 to £54.4m.
Insurance revenues of £105.6m rose by23% led by the car market, winning share in a growing market rebounding from FCA General Insurance Pricing regulations, while travel (£11.6m) continued its strong recovery following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions on the industry.
Headwinds from interest rate rises hit loans and mortgage conversion, with revenues down two per cent at £51.9m, while the cost of living impacted broadband.
The group, which currently has Dame Judi Dench as the face of Moneysupermarket.com in its advertising drive, said it is ready for the return of energy switching, in which it was historically a market leader, following sector turmoil driven by huge price hikes due to the Ukraine war. However, it cautioned that no significant return is expected in 2023.
Operating costs were kept to just three per cent in response to increasing inflation levels.
Several measures are being introduced to improve customer retention, including the trialing of a MoneySuperMarket cash rewards and loyalty club, ‘SuperSaveClub’.
The group said the interim period has delivered a strong first half performance, particularly in insurance where it has won market share in a growing switching market.
It expects the trends seen in insurance and money in the period to continue. However, it warns it does not expect significant revenues from energy switching this year. The continued strategic progress and measures being taken to drive growth, gives the board confidence the group will be towards the upper end of market expectations for the full year results.
Chief executive, Peter Duffy, said: “Our purpose is to help everyone save money on their household bills, and this has never been more vital as cost-of-living pressures bite.
“But it has got to be easy to use our site. And that’s where we’ve made good progress.
“The tech behind our trusted brands has been modernised and made increasingly common across the group. The more scalable it is, the more efficient our business is and the more we can invest in new tools and personalised features that help people save on more of their bills.”
