Profits have leapt higher at forecourt giant EG Group as a strong performance from its foodservice operations and soaring prices at the pumps helped fuel a 25% jump in first-quarter revenues.
Group EBITDA in the three months to 31 March increased 2% to $270m (£215.4m).
Fuel gross profits rose 15.8% in the quarter to $481m (£383.7m), but EG said margins slipped slightly as a result of the volatility of wholesale prices throughout the war in Ukraine.
Petrol prices hit their highest levels on record in April to 161.8p per litre, compared with 125.5p a year earlier, according to the Office for National Statistics, which also revealed inflation accelerated to 9% last month.
Foodservice profits at EG increased 54% in the first quarter to $175m (£139.6m), a 20% like-for-like rise, as the group invested in new openings, with 26 new outlets in the period, including 21 in the UK.
Gross profits in the grocery side of the group grew at a much slower pace, up 0.8% to $293m (£233.8m).
It contributed to a 25.1% rise in revenues to $6.9bn (£5.5bn).
Zuber Issa, who owns the business, as well as Asda, alongside his brother Mohsin and PE investor TDR Capital, said EG performed “resiliently” in the first three months of 2022.
“Against an uncertain and fast-changing backdrop, the business continued to make good progress against its strategic objectives across the group’s operations.
“The strong performance in foodservice was supported by UK acquisitions from 2021 that contributed $40m of gross profit across the quarter, while the business continues to benefit from ongoing investment and the rollout of new sites, including our proprietary brands and partnerships with franchise partners. This momentum only serves to underline our belief that foodservice represents the biggest opportunity for EG Group globally.
“The outlook for the year remains uncertain with household budgets already coming under significant inflationary pressure. However, we remain confident that the geographic diversity of our business and our highly complementary grocery and merchandise, foodservice and fuel operations will continue to underpin our resilience and allow us to outperform the wider market.”
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