Compass Group nearing 90% of pre-Covid revenues

Compass Group has reported revenue of £17.9b over the last year, 10.2% down on 2020 due to the impact of the pandemic, however it had returned to 88% of pre-Covid revenue by the fourth quarter.

In its financial results for the year ended 30 September 2021, the group said it was “extremely encouraged” by the recovery of its sports and leisure business, with growing crowds spending significantly more per person at their events than they did pre-pandemic.

While the group made progress recovering revenue in the second half of the year, driven by strong net new business with record new business wins of £2.1b, including around half from first-time outsourcing and client retention of 95.4%, the pandemic continued to affect performance.

Sectors including healthcare, senior living, defence, offshore and remote performed well above pre-pandemic revenues, and education and sports and leisure recovered strongly in the fourth quarter. However, business and industry revenues remained subdued due to the delayed return to offices.

Given its strong cashflow and increasing confidence in the future, the group has reinstated its dividend and proposed a final dividend of 14p per share.

During the year, Compass declared its global 2050 Net Zero commitment with a UK & Ireland target to reach net zero by 2030. It also catered for COP26 at the Glasgow SEC, hosted the “world's first net zero carbon major football match” in September and rolled out a new eco-labelling scheme across 300 UK business and industry client sites.

Dominic Blakemore, group chief executive, said: “Looking ahead we are now focused on growth, driven by encouraging market trends and our ability to provide more bespoke, digital and sustainable solutions that meet the evolving needs of clients in a post-pandemic world. The tailwinds from first-time outsourcing continue and, combined with our differentiated operating model and investment opportunities, we are in a strong position for growth.”