International sales and marketing group DCC achieved a record profit of £655.7m (€752.9m) in the year to March 31, representing an 11.3% increase from the previous year. This growth was driven by higher operating profits in the energy division and the effect of acquisitions made in the current and past year.
DCC invested £360m (€413.4m) in 19 acquisitions over the course of the year, for a total of £1.3bn (€1.4bn) over three years. Group revenue rose 25.2% to £22.2bn (€25.6bn), with a return on capital of 15.1%. This was attributed to the higher energy prices, with the sales in DCC Energy increasing 30.8% to £16.1bn (€18.5bn). Costs also went up 8% to £130.2m (€149.5m) due to the inflationary environment. The group proposed a 6.5% increase in the total dividend for the year, a 29th consecutive year of dividend growth. DCC anticipates another year of profit growth in 2024.
Chief Executive Donal Murphy commented: “DCC delivered strong growth in a volatile macro environment, demonstrating the resilience of our diverse business and the commitment of our teams throughout the group. We have also accelerated DCC Energy’s services and renewable offering through 10 acquisitions since the launch of our ‘leading with energy’ strategy a year ago, in addition to our organic initiatives to provide cleaner energy to our customers.” DCC currently employs over 16,000 people in 23 countries across the energy, healthcare and technology sectors.
