Britain’s Rolls-Royce has today lifted its mid-term targets to reflect confidence in future profit growth as its plan to improve engine performance and lower costs gains traction, helping it beat expectations last year.
The upgrade showed the progress made by Rolls-Royce over the last two years after former BP executive Tufan Erginbilgic took over as CEO, describing the company as a burning platform which was in need of a fundamental turnaround.
The group also today announced a dividend of 6 pence per share, having flagged last August that it would reinstate the payout after a five year pandemic break, and launched a £1 billion share buyback.
“Strong 2024 results build on our progress last year, as we transform Rolls-Royce into a high-performing, competitive, resilient, and growing business,” Erginbilgic said in a statement.
Rolls, Airbus’s exclusive engine partner on its widebody planes and a supplier to Boeing’s 787, said a cost-saving plan was boosting profits, as well as engine tweaks to ensure they can fly for longer before maintenance, and securing improved contract terms.
The company, which also powers ships, submarines and makes power generation systems, said it would meet its previous mid-term targets this year, two years earlier than planned, and as such was now guiding to mid-term underlying operating profit of £3.6 billion to £3.9 billion.
Profit for this year is expected to come in at between £2.7 billion and £2.9 billion Rolls said, and compared to the £2.46 billion it posted last year, comfortably ahead of a consensus forecast, and up 55% on last year.
Rolls-Royce was one of the best performers on Britain’s bluechip index in 2024. Shares in the company have soared more than five fold since Erginbilgic joined in January 2023.
