Greene King has released its preliminary results for 52 weeks to 30 April 2017, which show continued market outperformance.
Group revenue up by a record 6.9% to £2,216.5m, and operating profit, before exceptional and non-underlying items, rose by 4.9% to £411.5m.
Pub Company like-for-like sales were up 1.5%, ahead of the market, driven by a good Christmas, a stronger fourth quarter and a strong performance from Greene King Locals.
The firm saw a record performance from Pub Partners with like-for-like net profit up by 5%.
Brewing & Brands revenue increased by 1.7%, with own-brewed volume (OBV) down 2.8%, beating the UK cask ale market.
The integration of the Spirit estate was completed during the period, a year ahead of schedule.
CEO Rooney Anand (pictured) said, “Greene King has delivered another set of record results, generating full year EBITDA of over £500m for the first time. The team has worked hard to maintain momentum during the period and successfully completed the integration of Spirit a year ahead of schedule. This has led to a stronger, more competitive business with an industry-leading portfolio of brands.
“Our performance has been achieved against a demanding backdrop of increased costs, weaker consumer confidence and increasing competition. While I expect these challenges to intensify over the next few years, Greene King has a very strong track record of delivery in tough market conditions.
“Using the scale that the Spirit acquisition has brought, we will continue towards our aim of being the best pub company in Britain. We will achieve this goal by ensuring we have the best brands, the best invested estate and the best people in the industry. We will target further market outperformance, in a growing market, supported by additional cost efficiencies, a robust balance sheet and strong cash generation to deliver long-term growth and attractive returns for our shareholders.”