Royal Mail capitalises on parcels boom as annual profit more than doubles
Royal Mail saw its annual profit more than double in the year ended March 2021, bolstered by a surge in parcel deliveries as customers turned to online shopping.
The postal firm today reported a 116 per cent surge in adjusted operating profit to £702m and a 17 per cent jump in revenue to £12.6bn.
Simon Thompson, chief executive of Royal Mail, said that the company remains “laser focused” on accelerating the pace of change.
“It has been challenging at times, but we have learnt that we can deliver results and change at lightning pace when we are united by a common purpose.
“From starting to deliver on Sundays through to trialling drones – We’re changing. And it is working.”
The full year results followed a series of bumper sales figures as Royal Mail continued to capitalise on the e-commerce boom throughout the pandemic.
Momentum revved up as the group increased its capacity for parcel deliveries and the renaissance in letter writing was a bonus after declines last year.
The company is in pole position for promotion to London’s FTSE 100, according to recent analysis from Hargreaves Lansdown.
“Royal Mail has delivered a very strong set of results, buoyed, in particular, by parcel growth and the strength of its GLS business,” said John Moore, senior investment manager at Brewin Dolphin.
“The benefits of its transformation programme are beginning to come through as well, with references to some of the changes and innovations it has implemented in today’s statement.”
Royal Mail held back from providing a forecast for the current year due to uncertainties that could influence the number of packages it delivers.
While annual revenue topped expectations, the firm’s profit slightly missed estimates as it dealt with higher costs to manage the rise in parcel volumes.
“Although the past year has been phenomenal for Royal Mail, it still faces competition from the likes of Hermes and DPD,” said James Andrews, personal finance expert at money.co.uk.
“As this is only the start of its transformation, which has included delays to set up new infrastructure, it will need to continue to evolve to keep up with competitors.”
Following the full year update, shares in Royal Mail plunged 2.5 per cent as markets opened.