M&Z plc - Full-Year Results

On 25 April 2024, M&Z plc published its Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.

Performance Overview

Revenue surged by 10.3% to €31.3 million (2022: €28.4 million) driven by organic growth initiatives.

On the expenditure side, operating costs (net of other operating income) increased by 10.0% to €27.5 million, reflecting inflationary pressures as well as an uplift in the loss allowance with regard to trade receivables.

As the revenue growth outweighed the increase in costs, operating profit (‘EBIT’) rose by 16.1% to €2.86 million compared to €2.46 million in 2022. As a result, the EBIT margin improved to 9.1% compared to 8.7% in the previous year. Excluding depreciation and amortisation charges, EBITDA increased by 13.2% to €3.86 million which translates into an EBITDA margin of 12.3% (2022: 12.0%).

After accounting for net finance costs of €0.36 million and tax charges of €0.74 million, the net profit for the year amounted to €1.77 million which is 26% higher than the previous year and translates into a return on equity of 22.3% (2022: 19.4%), when excluding the company’s preference shares.

The Statement of Financial Position as at 31 December 2023 shows that total assets increased by 2.2% (or €0.4 million) to €19.4 million reflecting a higher level of trade receivables. Total liabilities eased by 0.6% to €9.79 million. Overall, the company’s equity base advanced by 5.3% (or €0.5 million) to €9.65 million, which includes an amount of €1.5 million in preference share capital.

Dividend

The Directors of M&Z are recommending a final net dividend per share of €0.01986 to all shareholders as at close of trading on 17 May 2024, subject to shareholders’ approval during the upcoming Annual General Meeting scheduled to be held on 11 June 2024. Coupled with the net interim dividend per share of €0.009 paid in August 2023, the total net dividend per share for the year amounts to €0.02886, unchanged from the previous year and translates into a payout ratio of 72% (2022: 91%.)

Outlook

In their commentary, the Directors explained that going forward, the company is expecting a moderate increase in revenues driven by strategic market positioning as well as continued innovation in the product offering. Furthermore, the company aims to enhance cost efficiencies through cost-saving initiatives. Additionally, the directors expect to continue recommending a strong dividend distribution going forward.