Summary
CRH Public Limited Company (CRH) released a trading update for the first quarter of 2017, highlighting a satisfactory start to the year with a 4% increase in group sales compared to a strong Q1 2016. Despite facing less favorable weather in some key markets and challenging prior year comparatives, the company anticipates that Group EBITDA for the first half of 2017 will be ahead of the prior year's €1.12 billion, with further progress expected in the second half. The update indicates positive momentum in the Americas, driven by improving construction activity and supportive federal and state infrastructure funding, with expectations of EBITDA growth. Europe also showed resilience with a 6% like-for-like sales increase, supported by stabilizing market trends and the timing of the Easter holiday. However, the Asia segment, specifically the Philippines, experienced a slow start with a significant decline in like-for-like sales due to poor weather and competitive market conditions.
Key Highlights
- 1Group sales increased by 4% in Q1 2017 compared to Q1 2016, which had benefited from mild weather.
- 2Group EBITDA for the first half of 2017 is expected to be ahead of H1 2016 (€1.12 billion), with further progress anticipated in H2 2017.
- 3Like-for-like Group sales grew by 3% in Q1 2017.
- 4Americas region saw positive trends with expected EBITDA ahead of last year, supported by improving construction activity and infrastructure funding.
- 5Europe region achieved 6% like-for-like sales growth, driven by stabilizing markets and Easter holiday timing.
- 6Asia region, particularly the Philippines, experienced a slow start with like-for-like sales down 12% due to poor weather and competitive pricing.
- 7CRH plans to report its Interim Results for the six months ending June 30, 2017, on August 24, 2017.