- Record 2023 results, above guidance
- 2023 demonstrates Veolia's ability to grow its results thanks to its unique positioning and strict operational discipline
- Efficiency and synergies objectives exceeded
- Decrease in net financial debt and leverage of 2.7 x, only 2 years after Suez acquisition
Great confidence for 2024: another year of strong results growth expected
Very strong organic Revenue growth of +9 %(1) to €45 351m, and +4.4 %(1) excluding energy price impact
- Solid growth in our 3 businesses
- Favorable impact of tariff indexations and of our strict pricing policy
Strong EBITDA organic growth of +7.8 %(1) to €6 543m, above the guidance range of +5 % to +7 %:
- €389 m of efficiency gains above the annual objective of €350m
- €168 m of synergies, above annual target, and €315m cumulated
Current EBIT of €3 346m(2), strong organic growth of +13.7 %(1)
Current net income of €1 335m(2), up +14.9%(3), above our target of €1.3 bn
ROCE back to pre-covid and pre-suez levels, at 8.3% after tax
The increase in Free cash flow to €1,143 m enables a reduction in net financial debt to €17,903 m, with a leverage of 2.74 x
Proposal to increase the Dividend to €1.25 per share
Ambitious 2024 guidance:
- Solid organic revenue growth (1) (4)
- Organic growth(1) of EBITDA between +5% and +6%
- Current net income group share above €1.5 bn(2)
- Leverage ratio maintained below 3x(2)
1 at constant scope and forex / 2 Excluding Suez purchase price allocation / 3 At current exchange rates / 4 Excluding energy prices
Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of the Group, commented:
The year 2023 will have been another record year for Veolia, exceeding our targets, with sales of 45 billion euros, EBITDA up 7.8% and current net income up 14.9% to 1,335 million euros, double that of 2018. These excellent results are the fruit of our unique positioning in the buoyant ecological transformation market, as well as of our ongoing efforts to maintain strict operational control.
Demand for our services has never been so high, with, for example, a full and fast-growing order book for our Water technologies business, at €5.3 billion, a sign that water scarcity and quality have become one of the primary consequences of climate change for cities and industries alike.
We have also continued to focus on efficiency, achieving savings of €389 million, in addition to the benefits of the Suez acquisition in the form of €168 million in cost synergies, which exceeded our targets.
2023 is the 7th consecutive year of earnings growth. During this period, Veolia, the world leader in ecological transformation, will have absorbed a series of major economic, health, geopolitical and energy shocks. This uninterrupted growth demonstrates not only our resilience and capacity to adapt, but also the relevance of our positioning in the buoyant market of ecological transformation, and our unique geographic footprint with almost 40% of sales outside Europe.
We look forward to 2024 with great confidence, perfectly poised for another year of strong earnings growth, and in particular a target of current net income above €1.5 billion.
Impact 2023 strategic plan objectives achieved
In March 2020, as part of its Impact 2023 strategic plan, the Group established a series of financial and extra-financial objectives for 2023. These objectives have been largely achieved, including:
- Employee engagement rate of 89%, on target to exceed 80%, with 7.5% of Group capital held by employees, who are now our largest shareholder
- 15.4 million tonnes of CO2 avoided
- Net income before non-recurring items in 2023 of €1,335 million (against a target of €1 billion), a doubling since 2018
- 400 million m3 of water saved by improving water network efficiency, to 76% by 2023.
Objectives 2024
In view of the very strong 2023 results and the good start to the year, we can look forward to 2024 with confidence, and announce ambitious targets.
- Solid organic growth of revenue(1) (2)
- Efficiency gains above €350m complemented by additional synergies for a cumulated amount of more than €400m end-2024, in line with the €500m cumulated objective
- Organic growth of EBITDA between +5 % and +6 %(1)
- Current net income group share above €1.5bn(3)
- Leverage ratio expected below 3x(3)
- Dividend growth in line with current EPS growth
(1) At constant scope and forex / (2) Excluding energy prices / (3) Excluding Suez PPA