Yankee dollars pouring in at Wolseley
LEAMINGTON Spa building supplies group Wolseley has seen its revenue grow by 5.3% on the back of strong performance in the US.
In an interim management statement for the three months to October 31, the firm reported revenue of £3.55bn compared to £3.37bn in the corresponding quarter last year.
Trading profit was £250m, up 6% from last year’s £236m while gross margin was ahead of last year at 28%.
Wolseley’s net debt now sits at £990m, compared to £858m a year ago, after purchasing £121m of its own shares.
Four bolt-on acquisitions were completed in the quarter with total annualised revenue of £98m.
The firm also entered into an exclusivity agreement relating to the disposal of its residual building materials activities in France.
A star performer for Wolseley was the US market. Ferguson, its US plumbing and heating business, grew revenue by 4.5% on a like-for-like basis.
Ian Meakins, chief executive, said: “In the US we achieved good growth in decent commercial and residential markets, partly offset by weaker industrial markets, which account for about 15% of US revenue.
“We achieved good growth in the Nordics as the steady recovery of construction markets continued, though revenue declined in the UK where the markets remained challenging.
“We will remain vigilant on costs and continue to drive performance improvements, strong cash conversion and better customer service.”
