Preliminary Results

Moneysupermarket.com Group PLC

19 February 2024

 

                19 February 2024

Moneysupermarket.com Group PLC preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2023

Record revenue and continued strong strategic progress

Year ended 31 December	2023	2022	Growth %
Group revenue	£432.1m	£387.6m	11
EBITDA *	£131.9m	£115.5m	14
Profit after tax	£72.3m	£69.3m	4
Adjusted basic EPS **	16.0p	14.4p	12
Basic EPS	13.5p	12.7p	6
Operating cashflow	£102.2m	£104.4m	(2)
Net debt ***	(£19.8m)	(£39.0m)	(49)
Dividend per share	12.1p	11.7p	3

Strategic highlights

·      Helped households save an estimated record £2.7bn

·      Data transformation complete, proprietary Dialogue data platform powering 76% of MSM user enquiries on core product lines

·      Common technology platform supporting ability to scale whilst simplifying our operations

·      Expanded offering with membership-based customer propositions: MSM SuperSaveClub, MSE App and Quidco

·      Incremental provider propositions launched and grown: B2B, Tenancy and "Market Boost" data services

·      Ranked first in the Technology sector on the FTSE Women Leaders Review report; ranked fifth in The Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers list

Financial highlights

·      Record revenue at £432m, despite no material revenue from energy switching

·      11% revenue growth led by exceptional trading in Insurance, supported by efficient acquisition and retain and grow strategy

·      EBITDA up 14%, ahead of revenue growth, to £132m with margins expanded to 31% demonstrating continued robust cost management

·      Adjusted basic EPS up 12%

·      Operating cashflow before tax increased 7%, following the increase in tax rates operating cashflow after taxes are down 2%

·      Full-year dividend up 3% to 12.1p, £65 million distribution to shareholders

Peter Duffy, CEO of Moneysupermarket Group, commented:

"We helped customers save a record £2.7bn in 2023. The more we can help households save, the more the Group grows. We're proud that in tough times for consumers, MoneySuperMarket, MoneySavingExpert and Quidco have been able to make a real difference for so many."

*Notes:

* EBITDA is operating profit before depreciation and amortisation. In both the current and prior year there were no adjusting items within EBITDA. This is consistent with how business performance is measured internally.

**Adjusted basic earnings per share is profit before tax adjusted for amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets as described on page 11, divided by the number of weighted average shares. A reconciliation of adjusted basic earnings per share to the interim financial statements is included in note 4.

***Net debt is cash and cash equivalents of £16.6m (2022: £16.6m) less borrowings of £34.5m (2022: £44.0m), deferred consideration of £nil (2022: £9.8m) and loan notes payable to Podium's non-controlling interest of £1.9m (2022: £1.8m). It does not include lease liabilities. Net debt has been restated for the year ended 31 December 2022 to include loan notes payable to Podium's non-controlling interest.

Quarter 4 trading

	Revenue for the three months ended 31 December 2023		Revenue for the year ended 31 December 2023
	£m	Growth %	£m	Growth %
Insurance	52.1	27	220.0	28
Money	23.1	4	100.2	(3)
Home Services	10.0	(6)	39.0	(2)
Travel *	2.9	9	20.6	33
Cashback *	16.9	1	59.8	0
Inter-vertical eliminations *	(2.3)	254	(7.5)	166
Total	102.7	11	432.1	11

* Growth % reflects changes to the comparative revenue for each vertical for the 3 months and year ended 31 December 2023 to align with the change in presentation of inter-vertical eliminations (see note 2)

Revenue in the fourth quarter grew 11%, driven by strong performance in Insurance.

·      In Insurance, revenue were up 27%. Exceptionally high premium inflation continued, driving high search traffic in the quarter and fuelling high levels of switching in car and in home. Towards the end of the year, the ramp-up in car premium inflation started to stabilise.

·      Money grew 4% in the quarter with continued growth in banking due to availability of attractive products. Borrowing also grew compared to Q4 2022 which saw a steep drop in conversion following the October 2022 mini budget.

·      Home Services was down 6% with continued broadband softness in a competitive market. Mobile also softened in the quarter with less attractive provider propositions. As expected, there were no material revenue from energy switching.

·      Revenue from Travel were up 9%, with growth in the fourth quarter slowing in a competitive market. Note that travel insurance is included within Insurance.

·      Cashback revenue was up 1% despite continued headwinds from online retail. We had a strong performance over the Black Friday weekend with attractive promotions secured with merchants.

Recent performance and outlook

In the first few weeks of 2024, we have had similar trends to those seen at the end of Q4 2023 continue. We don't expect any increase in energy switching revenue in 2024.  We expect the comparatives in Insurance will become tougher, particularly as we move into the second half. However, our trading performance and momentum in our strategic execution, gives the Board confidence that Group EBITDA will be within the current market consensus range.

Results presentation

A presentation for investors and analysts will be available from 7am at 

http://corporate.moneysupermarket.com/Investors/results-centre. A Q&A session will be held at 9.30am with Peter Duffy (CEO) and Niall McBride (CFO) accessed https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/ocyxn98w/

Notes: EBITDA is operating profit before depreciation and amortisation. Market expectations of EBITDA for 2024 from the analyst consensus on our investor website are in a range of £133.8m to £146.2m, with an average of £141.1m.

For further information, contact:             

Niall McBride, Chief Financial Officer           [e-mail] / 0203 826 4688

Emma Darke, Head of Investor Relations     [e-mail] / 0203 846 2524

William Clutterbuck, H/Advisors Maitland      [e-mail] / 07785 292617

Cautionary note regarding forward looking statements

This announcement includes statements that are forward looking in nature. Forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Except as required by the Listing Rules, Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules and applicable law, the company undertakes no obligation to update, revise or change any forward-looking statements to reflect events or developments occurring on or after the date such statements are published.

Business review

The Group generated record revenue and strong profit growth while maintaining gross margin, as expected. EBITDA and profit before tax grew 14% and 8% respectively. The strong trading performance has primarily been driven by Insurance. Car and home insurance premiums have increased significantly because of the rising cost of claims. The financial performance and value creation are testament to the delivery of our clear strategy and the investments made in recent years.

Our performance wasn't just because of a strong insurance market; the results of our strategy have helped us outperform the market. With the platform built, we now have the foundations in place to unlock the two sides of our business - to launch and expanded membership-based customer propositions that are changing the user experience, alongside adding new services to deepen our partnerships with providers. During the year we launched our new MoneySuperMarket SuperSaveClub and expanded our other membership-based customer propositions, the MoneySavingExpert App, and Quidco.

We are differentiated by our strength in breadth, with a large range of products for our customers to save on their bills. During the year, we expanded the services we offer to our providers and partners including Tenancy, advertising spots for providers to promote their products; our new "Market Boost" data service for providers; and B2B, where we host switching services, including for third-party brands.

We also continued to focus on our operational efficiency, closing two regional offices and delivered efficiency gains from simplifying our technology estate.  

We enjoy leading positions in growing markets which continue to have significant headroom for further expansion. Our brands are firmly trusted by our customers.

Our price comparison brand, MoneySuperMarket ('MSM'), had over 10 million active users in 2023. We continued to support our brand by building on the MoneySuperSeven marketing campaign with the launch of a new and well-received advert which is focused clearly around "saving money".

MoneySavingExpert ('MSE'), our content-led brand, is greatly trusted and provides valuable tips and tools to millions of users. We've seen strong uptake with over 1.1 million downloads of the MSE App and over 9 million people receive Martin Lewis's weekly tip email. "Bill Buster" helps users of the MSE App navigate the best ways to save money on their household bills.

Quidco is one of the largest cashback brands in the UK which we acquired in 2021. During the year we migrated Quidco onto our Group CRM platform. We have started to use AI technology alongside our Group CRM platform to improve the ability to personalise and target our CRM communications, early results show an uplift in purchases made. We invested in new TV and radio advertising which alongside our new CRM capabilities, supported member growth momentum. During the year we launched Quidco Compare for home, car and pet insurance; we now have seven compare products powered by the MSM Group technology platform.

Ice Travel Group ('ITG'), combines TravelSupermarket ('TSM') and icelolly.com. TSM is now using the icelolly.com proprietary bidding technology that allows providers to bid for more prominent placings on the website. Thanks to this improved offer and the combined reach of the two brands, ITG enjoyed strong growth during the year. TravelSupermarket launched TV advertising for the first time in seven years.

_______________

As well as helping households save money, we aim to make a positive difference to our people, the wider community, and the environment. 

In 2023 we began our partnership with Campaign Against Living Miserably, known as CALM, a suicide prevention charity. Staff engagement with CALM has been powerful, with fundraising events culminating in 38 colleagues taking part in a charity trek in Cambodia on behalf of the charity. We donated over of £136,000 of our 2-year £150,000 target and due to the level of engagement we will be extending the partnership and upping the fundraising target into 2025. MoneySavingExpert continued to donate funds to the MSE Charity, which offers grants of up to £7,500 to support non-profit organisations, such as a social enterprise or a registered charity, with specific money education projects. This year donations totalled £100,000.

For our employees, we ran the 'Big MONY Workshop', giving colleagues 24 hours to demonstrate living our purpose under the banner "helping YOU save money" with seminars and focus groups on personal financial wellbeing.

We want our colleagues to not only live our purpose but have confidence in us as a responsible and fair employer. We were recognised in the 2023 FTSE Women Leaders Review as #1 for Women on Boards in the Technology sector and commended for being in the FTSE250 top ten best performers overall for 4 years in a row. We were also proud to be ranked 5^th in the Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers List in 2023.

We remain committed to minimising our environmental impact and have a target of being Operational Net Zero by 2030 (a 90% reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions) and to be a 'Carbon Neutral' business, offsetting 100% of our carbon emissions. We disclose our environmental impact via the Carbon Disclosure Project and retained our C score for 2023. 

We are delighted to announce that we have received official accreditation from the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) for our ambitious environmental targets. Following a rigorous evaluation by the SBTi's Target Validation Team, our targets have been approved. We are committing to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 91% by 2030 from 2019; increase annual sourcing of renewable electricity to 100% by 2030; and, reduce scope 3 emissions by 58.8% by 2033 from 2019.

The SBTi commended our ambitious 1.5°C-aligned target, currently the most ambitious designation available through the SBTi process. This recognition underscores our commitment to addressing climate change and our impact on the environment.  

In 2023, we took a significant step towards global corporate responsibility and sustainable business practices by becoming a signatory of the United Nations Global Compact. Embracing the principles of the Compact, we committed to aligning our operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment, and anti-corruption. This decision not only reflects our commitment to upholding fundamental values but also positions us as a responsible business actively contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Strategic progress

·      Efficient acquisition

 "Efficient acquisition" improves the effectiveness of how we reach and convert our customers to optimise our spend.

Our efficient acquisition platforms, for Pay Per Click ('PPC'), Search Engine Optimisation ('SEO') and Customer Relationship Management ('CRM') are implemented and in use, attracting customers in a cost-effective way.

Our PPC bidding platform continues to improve the efficiency of our paid search advertising. Using our advanced data capabilities, we have made better use of our first party data and machine learning capabilities to optimise the amount we bid for each individual search term. We can now bid across a broader range of platforms, reaching a wider audience, and increasing our impressions. We have used AI to help develop our bidding strategies, increasing our efficiency. This has resulted in reduced cost per click.

SEO delivers substantial volumes of free search traffic to our sites and remains a dynamic area. We have updated more content and more pages using our market leading tool and now use AI to further drive efficiency.  We have now reduced the process for refreshing content on a page by more than 75%, freeing up our experts to create original content and promote our relevance.  

Brand marketing remains an important driver of traffic across the Group. In September we launched our SuperSaveClub marketing campaign, building on the original MoneySuperSeven campaign first launched in 2022. This campaign has resonated better with consumers than any we have done before, supporting in an uplift in direct to site traffic in the year. We invested in above-the-line marketing for TravelSupermarket, to put it at the top of people's minds when they are looking for deals on holidays, car hire, travel insurance, flights and hotels.  We also invested in above-the-line marketing for Quidco which supported member growth momentum.

MoneySavingExpert continues to offer content and tools to guide and support consumers to be in control of their finances and enjoys great trust. MSE was again named the most recommended brand by YouGov.

·      Retain and grow 

"Retain and grow" encourages customers to come back to us year after year and cross-buy the wealth of products we offer across the Group.

We want to retain customers and help them switch more of their household bills which will ultimately increase customer lifetime value. To drive higher retention, we focus on timely reminders and a simpler experience for returning users and during the year we launched and expanded membership-based customer propositions including SuperSaveClub, MSE App and Quidco.

Cross-sell continues to be a significant opportunity. We have a wide range of products and services and the data transformation we have delivered means we can more easily help more people save more with us across our range of products. In 2023, 24% of our MSM active users enquired in more than one of our core product lines. This is up from 23% the year before. Our improved data capabilities mean we are now tracking cross enquiry in even more product lines. On average, active users enquired in 1.3 of our product lines.

Data is critical to deepen our relationship with our customers. We have combined our centralised data with our proprietary 'Dialogue' platform to improve speed of enquiry for the user across our products. Dialogue creates simpler, quicker journeys for the user and creates a better understanding of the customer through the creation of a shared user profile. 76% of MSM enquiries on core channels are now completed on Dialogue.

Real-time and centralised data enables our user experience to be more personalised, target our marketing more effectively and deliver more value for our providers. With our data consolidated and available instantly, we can offer better services to both users and providers. Our ability to onboard products from providers quickly can give users more choices and keener pricing as well as improve the speed of roll out for our B2B platform to other brands. We will continue to expand the product lines that use the shared profile through Dialogue in 2024 and with the aim to improve conversion and cross-sell.

This year we migrated Quidco onto our Group CRM platform allowing us to deliver personalised and targeted messages to users across our app, web and via email. Through the use of AI and machine learning, we can now dynamically target customers based on their individual interactions with our platform allowing us to communicate with our users in a highly personalised manner. We have also introduced the sophisticated use of AI and automation which has streamlined our ability to set up campaigns more efficiently.  Improvements in our CRM tool and effective targeting have resulted in an uplift in purchases made.

·      Expanding our offer

Our transformed tech and data platform allows us to extend the services we offer our providers including the speed we can roll out our B2B proposition.

The mortgage proposition remains an attractive opportunity for the Group. Having gained control of our mortgages joint venture partner Podium in December 2022, we have continued to develop and digitalise the mortgage comparison services we provide to our customers. During the year we agreed a partnership with Rightmove to support the digitalisation of their new mortgage offering.

·      What's next?

We are focusing on developing and growing our membership-based customer propositions to drive customer loyalty and continue to build on our 'retain and grow' strategy. We are expanding the services we offer to our providers and partners to grow the strength and breadth of our offering. Both strategies set out to ultimately help households across the country save more money with us.

·      "Membership-based customer propositions"

SuperSaveClub

The SuperSaveClub is aligned to our mission of helping households save money, and rewards customers every time they save money on their household bills, all with the confidence that our price promise provides.

When customers buy an eligible product through MoneySuperMarket they can join SuperSaveClub and get access to 12 months of unlimited free days out at thousands of leading attractions nationwide available through the MoneySuperMarket app.  Then, as a member of the SuperSaveClub, every time they purchase an eligible product, they earn a reward: £15 cash for every car, home insurance or broadband purchase, £10 for purchasing pet insurance, and £5 for signing up to Credit Monitor, purchasing an annual travel policy or a mobile phone deal.  Rewards are available via a member's MoneySuperMarket account and can be withdrawn at any time, as a pre-paid MasterCard, or vouchers at leading retailers. The SuperSaveClub is set up to encourage users to come directly to us and incentivises cross-buy and re-buy rates through rewards and ease of use.

Following the initial trial in May, we formally launched the SuperSaveClub in September and added further products to give members even more opportunities to do more and save more with us. We now have nearly 200,000 members. Early results since launch show that SuperSaveClub members have a stronger engagement, are more likely to come to us directly, and buy more products with us than non-members.

MoneySavingExpert App

During the year we have also expanded our MoneySavingExpert App which has gained traction and now has over 1.1 million downloads and over 420,000 monthly active users. We have launched a host of new features to enhance the user experience including:

·      MSE Chat GPT, allowing users to interrogate MoneySavingExpert content via AI technology.

·      "Bill Buster", our tool to help keep track of users bills and service providers including alerts when costs change or a deal ends and then showing users how to save and get onto the best value products.

By linking MSE's helpful and trusted content with a suite of more personalised tools, we support users to gain greater control of their finances and potentially save more money. We will continue to expand the range of tools available to help users keep informed and save more money.

Quidco

Quidco enjoys frequent engagement with our members with thousands of merchants offering attractive offers and rewards.  We now power seven Quidco Compare products on the Group tech stack, with car, home and pet insurance launched in '23.

We moved Quidco onto the Group marketing platform in the middle of 2023 and returned to TV advertising supporting membership growth momentum.

·      "Best provider propositions"

Tenancy

Tenancy is advertising whereby providers promote their brands or products in designated spots on our sites clearly listed as 'sponsored'. Tenancy is now live in all our key verticals following an initial trial to expand this offering beyond home services with pet insurance in 2022. Revenue from tenancy is up by double digit percentage.

Market Boost

During the year we launched our 'Market Boost' proposition on loans, comprising insights to enable partners to grow their business while helping households save money. Market Boost includes aggregated customer and market data insights which can help providers use data to offer our users even better deals.

B2B

Our B2B proposition allows us to utilise our Group platform to provide switching services, including to third-party brands, extending our reach and market share. We launched a B2B car insurance journey in early 2023 and have already won seven new car insurance partners including Car Gurus and Caura. During the year we agreed a partnership with Rightmove to support their broadband comparison services through their tenant portal and heping to identify broadband speeds and offers on their wider property listings. Revenue from B2B is up more than two thirds on last year.

Key performance indicators

The Board reviews key performance indicators (KPIs) to assess the performance of the business against the Group's strategy. We measure six key strategic KPIs: estimated customer savings, marketing margin, net promoter score, active users, revenue per active user, and cross-channel enquiry.

	31 December 2023	31 December 2022
Estimated Group customer savings	£2.7bn	£1.8bn
Group marketing margin*	58%	57%
MSM and MSE net promoter score	70	72
MSM & Quidco active users**	14.2m	13.0m
MSM & Quidco revenue per active user	£17.82	£16.24
MSM cross-channel enquiry	24%	23%

Estimated Group customer savings:  This is calculated by multiplying sales volume by the market average price per product

                                                                based on external data compared to the cheapest deal in the results table for core

                                                                channels. Savings for non-core channels are estimated by applying the savings for

                                                                core channels proportionally to non-core revenue. The cashback earned by Quidco

                                                                members is included in this KPI.

Group marketing margin:                     The inverse relationship between Group revenue and total marketing spend represented as a percentage. Total marketing spend is the direct cost of sales plus distribution expenses.

MSM & MSE net promoter score:         The 12 monthly rolling average NPS (1 Jan 2023 - 31 Dec 2023 inclusive) measured

by YouGov Brand Index service Recommend Score weighted by revenue for MSM and

MSE to create a combined NPS.

MSM & Quidco active users:                The number of unique MSM accounts running enquiries on MSM (car insurance, home insurance, life insurance, travel insurance, pet insurance, van insurance, credit cards, loans and energy channels) in the last 12-month period, plus the number of unique Quidco members making a purchase in the last 12-month period.

MSM & Quidco revenue per active user: The revenue for MSM channels (car insurance, home insurance, life insurance, travel insurance, pet insurance, van insurance, credit cards, loans and energy channels) plus Quidco revenue net of member commission divided by the number of MSM and Quidco active users for the last 12 months.

MSM cross-channel enquiry:           The proportion of MSM active users that enquire in more than one channel (car insurance, home insurance, life insurance, travel insurance, pet insurance, van insurance, credit cards, loans and energy) within a 12-month period.

*Marketing spend for the year is £181.5m (2022: £165.2m).

**We have extended our definition of active users to reflect the development of the business by including Quidco and 3 additional MSM channels where enquiry data is available. Comparatives for active users and revenue per active user in the above table have been restated to reflect this change.

KPI definitions reflect the parts of the Group most relevant for assessing its performance and where data is available: NPS includes our two biggest consumer brands. Active users is most relevant for MSM and Quidco where user accounts are identified as a key part of the transactional journey. Cross-channel enquiry relates only to MSM as this metric is aligned to our aim of offering more products to users as part of our retain and grow strategy.

We estimate that the Group saved customers £2.7bn in 2023. The increase from 2022 was driven by growth in car insurance switching volumes and savings per sale for car insurance customers.

NPS fell slightly to 70 but still demonstrates that trust and satisfaction in both brands remains high. MSE scored extremely well and MSM finished the year ahead of other price comparison sites.

MSM and Quidco active users rose by 1.2m to 14.2m, driven by strong performance in car insurance, partly offset by a decline in energy enquiries as the switching market remained subdued.

Revenue per active user grew by £1.58p to £17.82p with fewer energy enquiries (which had negligible conversion because of a lack of switchable tariffs) and mix into other higher average revenue per user channels.

Marketing margin increased by 1%pt to 58% reflecting improvements in our efficient acquisition strategy, as we optimise our PPC, SEO, CRM and brand marketing.

During the year MSM cross-channel enquiry rate improved by 1% to 24% with more users enquiring in additional channels in combination with car insurance.  

Financial review

Group revenue increased 11% to £432.1m (2022: £387.6m) with profit after tax increasing 4% to £72.3m (2022: £69.3m). When reviewing performance, the Board reviews several adjusted measures, including EBITDA, which increased 14% to £131.9m (2022: £115.5m), and adjusted basic EPS which increased 12% to 16.0p (2022: 14.4p), as shown in the table below.

Extract from the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income

for the year ended 31 December

	2023		2022	Growth
	£m		£m	%
Revenue	432.1		387.6	11
Cost of sales	(139.7)		(125.1)	12
Gross profit	292.4		262.5	11
Operating costs	(195.1)		(173.5)	12
Operating profit	97.3		89.0	9
Amortisation and depreciation	34.6		26.5	31
EBITDA*	131.9		115.5	14
Adjusted earnings per share**:
- basic (p)		16.0	14.4	12
- diluted (p)		16.0	14.3	12

* In the current and prior year there were no adjusting items within EBITDA.

** A reconciliation to adjusted EPS is included within note 4.

Alternative performance measures

We use a number of alternative (non-Generally Accepted Accounting Practice ("non-GAAP")) financial measures which are not defined within IFRS. The Board reviews EBITDA and adjusted basic EPS alongside GAAP measures when reviewing the performance of the Group. Executive management bonus targets include an EBITDA measure and the Long-Term incentive plans include an adjusted basic EPS measure.

The adjustments are separately disclosed and are usually items that are non-underlying to trading activities and that are significant in size. Alternative performance measures used within these statements are accompanied with a reference to the relevant GAAP measure and the adjustments made. These measures should be considered alongside the IFRS measures.

Revenue

for the year ended 31 December

		2023	2022	Growth
		£m	£m	%
Insurance		220.0	172.0	28
Money		100.2	103.3	(3)
Home Services		39.0	39.8	(2)
Travel *		20.6	15.5	33
Cashback *		59.8	59.8	0
Inter-vertical eliminations *		(7.5)	(2.8)	166
Total		432.1	387.6	11

* The comparative revenue for the year ended 31 December 2022 has been restated to align with the change in presentation of inter-vertical eliminations. The inter-vertical eliminations revenue line reflects transactions where revenue in Cashback and Travel has also been recorded as cost of sales in other verticals.

Revenue grew 11% to £432.1m. Strong trading was led by Insurance and supported by our efficient acquisition and retain and grow strategy.

Insurance

Revenue in Insurance grew 28% to £220.0m, with growth in all core products. Growth was underpinned by strong switching in car insurance and home insurance, and we won market share in both products.

Car and home premium prices paid increased substantially as providers passed on rising costs of claims. Premium prices paid in car insurance were up 35% to end of November, which showed signs of stabilising at the end of the year. Home premium inflation accelerated in the year, up 34% in the same period. The combination of high levels of premium price inflation and the cost-of-living squeeze resulted in high levels of search traffic with consumers seeking a better deal.

Since the introduction of the FCA's General Insurance Pricing Practices (GIPP) regulation, insurers have innovated and we have launched a record 96 new brands and products on our site since the introduction of GIPP at the start of 2022, as we help consumers navigate a broader range of choice and complexity.

Our efficient acquisition strategy has supported improved levels of conversion alongside our increasingly differentiated customer propositions including our price promise and journey optimisation alongside growth of our B2B offering.

Following a strong year of growth for travel insurance in 2022, momentum continued into the first half of 2023 and stabilised in the second half with a move away from "silver" tier policies as consumers more frequently chose either a more basic "bronze" level of cover or enhanced "gold" coverage.

Money

Revenue in Money was £100.2m, down 3% on 2022 which was an exceptionally strong year.  Money was still up 33% compared to 2021.

Interest rates affected Money in borrowing making loans and mortgages more expensive, and in banking, where savings and deposit products offered more attractive interest rates.

In borrowing, although search traffic remained strong throughout the year, conversion has remained lower than levels seen in 2022 which reflects the higher costs of lending with the Bank of England holding base rates at 5.25% at the end of the year, a 15 year high, following a run of 14 consecutive increases.

Within our banking product lines, current accounts performed strongly as customers looked to lock in high savings rates and promotional switching incentives. 2023 was our best ever year for current account switching, with attractive deals available across a range of providers.  

Home Services

Home Services revenue was £39.0m, down 2%, as a result of softer broadband switching in a competitive market.

Revenue from mobile switching was up double digits, driven by strong offers and new handset launches.

Visitor levels to our site for broadband switching were steady, but conversion dropped, reflecting the subdued and competitive market.

The energy switching market remained subdued through the year. 1^st July was the first time that Ofgem's Energy Price Cap ('EPC') had fallen below the government's Energy Price Guarantee ('EPG') since its inception in October 2022. However, the gap between the EPC and EPG remained slim throughout the second half of the year. MSM hosted a small number of limited size switching deals which were immaterial.

Travel

We delivered strong growth in Travel with revenue up 33%, with particularly strong growth in the first half. There was continued strong demand for package holidays. 

During the year, we invested in a new TV advert for TravelSupermarket, the first in seven years. We also invested in upgrading the tech platform.

Cashback

Revenue in Cashback was flat at £59.8m despite continuing headwinds in online retail, with rising costs of living impacting discretionary spending. We delivered strong growth in Insurance products on Quidco following the launch of Quidco Compare on the MSM Group tech platform. Car, home and pet insurance were launched on the MSM Group tech platform in 2023.

During the year we made continued progress, investing in our efficient acquisition tools by finalising the migration onto the Group CRM platform and in a new TV and radio advertising campaign which supported member growth momentum.

Gross profit

Gross profit was up 11% to £292.4m, while gross margin was maintained at 67.7% (2022: 67.7%).  The margin reflects the strong performance in Insurance, particularly in car insurance, as well as PPC efficiency, and was offset by increased marketing spend in Cashback and Travel.

Operating costs

for the year ended 31 December

		2023	2022	Growth
		£m	£m	%
Distribution expenses		41.8	40.1	4
Administrative expenses		153.3	133.4	15
Operating costs		195.1	173.5	12
Within administration expenses
Amortisation of technology related intangible assets		9.3	10.4	(11)
Amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets		21.1	11.3	87
Depreciation		4.2	4.8	(12)
Amortisation and depreciation		34.6	26.5	31

Distribution expenses increased by 4% with a decision to support new TV and radio advertisements for Quidco and TravelSupermarket on top of planned continued investment in MSM's MoneySuperSeven campaign including the launch of the SuperSaveClub.

Administrative expenses increased by 15%. This included a £9.8m uplift in amortisation of acquired intangibles following a reassessment of their useful economic lives. This is a change to the phasing of amortisation costs and in effect brings forward charges from future periods. Excluding depreciation and amortisation, underlying administrative expenses increased by 11%.

Setting aside the £1.7m increase in distribution expenses reflecting the investment in our brands, operating expenses before non-cash items (depreciation, amortisation and share based payments) increased by 8%. Included within the increase in administrative expenses was the full year effect of the consolidation of Podium, which we acquired in December 2022. On a like-for-like basis (adjusting for Podium and excluding non-cash items), the increase in operating costs is 6%. This reflects underlying cost management, including closing regional offices, and delivery of efficiency gains from simplifying the technology estate.

Adjusting items*

for the year ended 31 December

		2023	2022	Growth
		£m	£m	%
Amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets		21.1	11.3	87
Adjusting items included in operating profit		21.1	11.3	87

* Amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets is not included in EBITDA and therefore is only an adjusting item in the adjusted EPS calculation.

Amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets relates to technology, brands and member relationships arising on the acquisitions of Decision Tech, CYTI, Quidco and Podium, as well as the combination of TravelSupermarket and icelolly.com, in prior years.

The charge has increased this year following a reduction in the amortisation period of the brands and member relationships assets from ten to five years. This reflects a change in the period of economic benefit that is expected to be generated by these assets, which becomes more diluted as they are integrated into the Group. As this is a change in accounting estimate, the catch up of amortisation has been recognised in the current year without the requirement for any prior period restatement.

Dividends

The Board has recommended a final dividend of 8.9p pence per share (2022: 8.6p), making the proposed full year dividend 12.1p pence per share (2022: 11.7p). Our capital allocation policy remains unchanged. First we prioritise organic growth, followed by the ordinary dividend, after which we consider M&A and then enhanced distribution to shareholders.

The final dividend will be paid on 10 May 2024 to shareholders on the register on 2 April 2024, subject to approval by shareholders at the Annual General Meeting to be held on 2 May 2024.

Tax

The effective tax rate of 21.5% (2022: 18.7%) is below the UK standard rate of 25.0% (2022: 19.0%). This is primarily due to the change in tax rate in April 2023, which has resulted in a blended rate for the year of 23.5%. The effective tax rate is lower than this blended rate due to an adjustment in respect of the prior period which has reduced the tax charge.

Earnings per share

Basic reported earnings per share increased by 6% to 13.5p (2022: 12.7p). Growth was not as high as the growth in EBITDA primarily due to the additional £9.8m amortisation charge from acquired intangibles and higher finance costs.

Adjusted basic earnings per share increased by 12% to 16.0p per share (2022: 14.4p), which is driven by the EBITDA growth.

Adjusted earnings per share is based on profit before tax after adding back the adjusting items detailed above. A tax rate of 23.5% (2022: 19.0%) is applied to calculate adjusted profit after tax. The tax rate this year reflects the change in standard rate from 19.0% to 25.0% in April 2023. Adjusted basic earnings per share increased by 12% to 16.0p per share (2022: 14.4p), which is driven by the EBITDA growth.

Cashflow and balance sheet

Operating cashflows decreased to £102.2m (2022: £104.4m) due to an increase in tax payments arising from an increase in the rate of corporation tax and part of the Group transitioning to quarterly instalment payments. Operating cashflows before tax payments increased from £122.4m to £130.8m. The working capital outflow of £4.1m was mainly driven by higher receivables, partially offset by an increase in payables, both of which reflect the uplift in trade year on year.

The Group's net debt position at year end was £19.8m (2022: £39.0m restated). Net debt is cash and cash equivalents of £16.6m (2022: £16.6m) less borrowings of £34.5m (2022: £44.0m), loan notes payable to Podium's non-controlling interest of £1.9m (2022: £1.8m) and £nil (2022: £9.8m) deferred consideration from the Quidco acquisition which was settled during the year. Net debt to EBITDA fell to 0.2x from 0.3x in 2022.

Cash outflows on investing activities of £20.9m include £11.0m of cash capital expenditure and £10.0m (including interest) of deferred consideration (including interest) in respect of Quidco.

Capital expenditure

Capital expenditure was £11.0m (2022: £11.4m), including technology investment of £10.5m (2022: £10.6m). In 2024, technology capex is expected to continue to be modest at between £11m and £13m as we continue to invest in work to support delivery of strategic initiatives.

The amortisation charge for technology assets has decreased slightly from £10.4m to £9.3m due to older assets becoming fully written down during the year.

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income

for the year ended 31 December

	Note			2023	2022
				£m	£m
Revenue	2			432.1	387.6
Cost of sales				(139.7)	(125.1)
Gross profit				292.4	262.5
Distribution expenses				(41.8)	(40.1)
Administrative expenses				(153.3)	(133.4)
Operating profit				97.3	89.0
Net finance expense	3			(5.2)	(3.5)
Share of post-tax loss of equity accounted investees				-	(0.3)
Profit before taxation				92.1	85.2
Taxation	4			(19.8)	(15.9)
Profit for the year				72.3	69.3
Other comprehensive income				(0.1)	(2.0)
Total comprehensive income for the year				72.2	67.3
Profit/(Loss) attributable to:
Owners of the Company				72.7	68.3
Non-controlling interest	11			(0.4)	1.0
Profit for the year				72.3	69.3
Total comprehensive income attributable to:
Owners of the Company				72.6	66.3
Non-controlling interest	11			(0.4)	1.0
Total comprehensive income for the year				72.2	67.3
Earnings per share:
Basic earnings per ordinary share (pence)	5			13.5	12.7
Diluted earnings per ordinary share (pence)	5			13.5	12.7

Consolidated statement of financial position

as at 31 December

	Note		2023	2022
			£m	£m
Assets
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment			32.1	35.4
Intangible assets and goodwill	7		260.3	279.9
Other investments			5.4	5.5
Total non-current assets			297.8	320.8
Current assets
Trade and other receivables			79.3	63.5
Prepayments			10.1	8.3
Current tax assets			1.3	-
Cash and cash equivalents			16.6	16.6
Total current assets			107.3	88.4
Total assets			405.1	409.2
Liabilities
Non-current liabilities
Other payables			25.4	27.7
Borrowings	8		-	30.0
Deferred tax liabilities			15.8	22.5
Total non-current liabilities			41.2	80.2
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables			103.3	99.5
Borrowings	8		34.5	14.0
Current tax liabilities			-	0.8
Total current liabilities			137.8	114.3
Total liabilities			179.0	194.5
Equity
Share capital			0.1	0.1
Share premium			205.5	205.4
Reserve for own shares			(2.4)	(2.4)
Retained earnings			(46.3)	(58.1)
Other reserves			63.6	63.7
Equity attributable to the owners of the Company			220.5	208.7
Non-controlling interest			5.6	6.0
Total equity			226.1	214.7
Total equity and liabilities			405.1	409.2

Consolidated statement of changes in equity

for the year ended 31 December

	Share capital	Share premium	Reserve for own shares	Retained earnings	Other reserves	Equity attributable to the owners of the Company	Non-controlling interest	Total Equity
	£m	£m	£m	£m	£m	£m	£m	£m
At 1 January 2022	0.1	205.4	(2.6)	(64.7)	65.1	203.3	4.3	207.6
Profit for the year	-	-	-	68.3	-	68.3	1.0	69.3
Other comprehensive income	-	-	-	(0.6)	(1.4)	(2.0)	-	(2.0)
Total comprehensive income for the year	-	-	-	67.7	(1.4)	66.3	1.0	67.3
Acquisition of subsidiary with non-controlling interest	-	-	-	-	-	-	0.7	0.7
Purchase of shares by employee trusts	-	-	(0.3)	-	-	(0.3)	-	(0.3)
Exercise of LTIP awards	-	-	0.5	(0.5)	-	-	-	-
Equity dividends	-	-	-	(62.8)	-	(62.8)	-	(62.8)
Share-based payments	-	-	-	2.2	-	2.2	-	2.2
At 31 December 2022	0.1	205.4	(2.4)	(58.1)	63.7	208.7	6.0	214.7
At 1 January 2023	0.1	205.4	(2.4)	(58.1)	63.7	208.7	6.0	214.7
Profit for the year	-	-	-	72.7	-	72.7	(0.4)	72.3
Other comprehensive income	-	-	-	-	(0.1)	(0.1)	-	(0.1)
Total comprehensive income for the year	-	-	-	72.7	(0.1)	72.6	(0.4)	72.2
New shares issued	-	0.1	-	-	-	0.1	-	0.1
Purchase of shares by employee trusts	-	-	(0.5)	-	-	(0.5)	-	(0.5)
Exercise of LTIP awards	-	-	0.5	(0.5)	-	-	-	-
Equity dividends	-	-	-	(63.4)	-	(63.4)	-	(63.4)
Share-based payments	-	-	-	3.0	-	3.0	-	3.0
At 31 December 2023	0.1	205.5	(2.4)	(46.3)	63.6	220.5	5.6	226.1

Consolidated statement of cash flows

for the year ended 31 December

				2023		2022
					£m	£m
Operating activities
Profit for the year					72.3	69.3
Adjustments to reconcile Group profit to net cash flow from operating activities:
Amortisation of intangible assets					30.4	21.7
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment					4.2	4.8
Share of post-tax loss of equity accounted investees					-	0.3
Net finance expense					5.2	3.5
Equity settled share-based payment transactions					3.0	2.2
Taxation expense					19.8	15.9
Changes in trade and other receivables					(17.6)	3.0
Changes in trade and other payables					13.5	1.7
Taxation paid					(28.6)	(18.0)
Net cash flow from operating activities					102.2	104.4
Investing activities
Interest received					0.1	0.0
Acquisition of property, plant and equipment					(0.5)	(0.8)
Acquisition of intangible assets					(10.5)	(10.6)
Acquisition of subsidiaries, net of cash acquired					(10.0)	(5.3)
Acquisition of investments					-	(0.2)
Net cash used in investing activities					(20.9)	(16.9)
Financing activities
Dividends paid					(63.4)	(62.8)
Proceeds from share issue					0.1	-
Purchase of shares by employee trusts					(0.5)	(0.3)
Proceeds from borrowings					53.5	62.0
Repayment of borrowings					(63.0)	(75.5)
Interest paid					(5.1)	(3.7)
Repayment of lease liabilities					(2.9)	(3.1)
Net cash used in financing activities					(81.3)	(83.4)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents					0.0	4.1
Cash and cash equivalents at 1 January					16.6	12.5
Cash and cash equivalents at 31 December					16.6	16.6

Notes

1.   Basis of preparation

Moneysupermarket.com Group PLC (the Company) is a public limited company registered and domiciled in England and Wales and listed on the London Stock Exchange.

The financial statements are prepared on the historical cost basis. Comparative figures presented in the financial statements represent the year ended 31 December 2022.

The financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as those for the year ended 31 December 2022.

Going concern

The Directors have prepared the financial statements on a going concern basis for the following reasons.

As at 31 December 2023, the Group's external debt comprised an amortising loan (with a balance outstanding of £30m, repayable by October 2024) and a revolving credit facility ('RCF'), (of which £4.5m of the £125m available was drawn down). In June 2023, the RCF was increased from £90m to £125m and its term was extended from three to four years, with the option of a further year. This means that the current RCF is due for renewal in June 2027 unless it is extended to June 2028. Since the year end the balance of £4.5m has been fully repaid and no further amounts have been drawn down. The operations of the business have been impacted by macroeconomic uncertainty caused by high inflation and rising interest rates, as well as the continued impact of high wholesale prices on the energy switching market. However, the Group remains profitable, cash generative and compliant with the covenants of the bank loan and RCF. 

The Directors have prepared cash flow forecasts for the Group, including its cash position, for a period of at least 12 months from the date of approval of the financial statements. The Directors note the Group's net current liability position and have also considered the effect of potential cost-of-living trading headwinds and recession and competition such as new entrants upon the Group's business, financial position, and liquidity in severe, but plausible, downside scenarios. The scenarios modelled take into account the potential downside trading impacts from recession, sustained cost-of-living increases, competitive pressures and any one-off cash impacts on top of a base scenario derived from the Group's latest forecasts. The severe, but plausible, downside scenarios modelled, under a detailed exercise at a channel level, included minimal recovery of energy over the period of the cash flow forecasts and in the most severe scenarios reflected some of the possible cost mitigations that could be taken. The impact these scenarios have on the financial resources, including the extent of utilisation of the available debt arrangements and impact on covenant calculations has been modelled. The possible mitigating circumstances and actions in the event of such scenarios occurring that were considered by the Directors included cost mitigations such as a reduction in the ordinary dividend payment, a reduction in operating expenses or the slowdown of capital expenditure. A reverse stress test has also been performed, which assumes the maximum available drawdown of borrowings, whilst maintaining covenant compliance. 

The scenarios modelled and the reverse stress test showed that the Group and the Parent Company will be able to operate at adequate levels of liquidity for at least the next 12 months from the date of signing the financial statements. The Directors, therefore, consider that the Group and Parent Company have adequate resources to continue in operational existence for at least 12 months from the date of approval of the financial statements and have prepared them on a going concern basis.

Consideration of Climate Change

In preparing the financial statements, the Directors have considered the impact of climate change and there has been no material impact identified in the reporting period on the financial reporting judgements and estimates. The Directors considered the risks with respect to going concern and viability, as well as the cashflow forecasts used in the impairment assessment, and noted no material risks. Whilst there is no material financial impact to the Group expected from climate change within the reporting and forecast period of the Group, the Directors will assess these risks regularly against the judgements and estimates used in preparation of the financial statements.

2.   Segmental information

Below we report a measure of profitability at segment level that reflects the way performance is assessed internally. During the year, we changed the way in which we do this by including inter-vertical revenue and inter-vertical cost of sales within the verticals in order to give a more accurate view of performance. These amounts are now deducted in a separate "inter-vertical eliminations" column to arrive at the consolidated total values. The comparative segmental information for the year ended 31 December 2022 has been restated in the same way.

The Group has a number of teams, capabilities and infrastructure which are used to support all verticals e.g. data platform and brand marketing. These are shared costs of the Group rather than "central costs". We have concluded there is no direct or accurate basis for allocating these costs to the operating segments and therefore they are disclosed separately, which is how they are presented to the Chief Operating Decision Maker.

The Group's reportable segments are Insurance, Money, Home Services, Travel and Cashback. These segments represent individual trading verticals which are reported separately for revenue and directly attributable expenses. Net finance expense, share of loss of equity accounted investments, tax and net assets are only reviewed by the Chief Operating Decision Maker at a consolidated level and therefore have not been allocated between segments. All assets held by the Group are located in the UK.

The following summary describes the products and services in each segment.

Segment		Products and services
Insurance		Customer completes transaction for insurance policy on any of the following: provider website, our website or a telephone call.
Money		Customer completes transaction for money products such as credit cards, loans and mortgages on provider website.
Home Services		Customer completes transaction for home services products such as energy and broadband on provider website.
Travel		Customer completes transaction for travel products on provider website or our website.
Cashback		Customer completes transaction for retail, telecommunications, services and travel products with a cashback incentive on merchant website. Customer receives confirmed cashback incentive on our site.

Segment	Insurance £m	Money £m	Home Services £m	Travel £m	Cashback £m	Shared costs £m	Inter-vertical eliminations £m	Total £m
Year ended 31 December 2023
Revenue	220.0	100.2	39.0	20.6	59.8	-	(7.5)	432.1
Directly attributable expenses	(93.5)	(33.7)	(12.5)	(15.2)	(52.1)	(100.7)	7.5	(300.2)
EBITDA contribution	126.5	66.5	26.5	5.4	7.7	(100.7)	-	131.9
EBITDA contribution margin*	58%	66%	68%	26%	13%	-	-	31%
Depreciation and amortisation								(34.6)
Net finance expense								(5.2)
Share of post-tax loss of equity accounted investees								-
Profit before tax								92.1
Taxation								(19.8)
Profit for the year								72.3

Segment	Insurance £m	Money £m	Home Services £m	Travel £m	Cashback £m	Shared costs £m	Inter-vertical eliminations £m	Total £m
Year ended 31 December 2022
Revenue **	172.0	103.3	39.8	15.5	59.8	-	(2.8)	387.6
Directly attributable expenses	(74.2)	(31.0)	(14.6)	(10.0)	(50.3)	(94.8)	2.8	(272.1)
EBITDA contribution	97.8	72.3	25.2	5.5	9.5	(94.8)	-	115.5
EBITDA contribution margin*	57%	70%	63%	35%	16%	-	-	30%
Depreciation and amortisation								(26.5)
Net finance expense								(3.5)
Share of post-tax loss of equity accounted investees								(0.3)
Profit before tax								85.2
Taxation								(15.9)
Profit for the year								69.3

* EBITDA contribution margin is calculated by dividing EBITDA contribution by revenue.

** The comparative revenue for the year ended 31 December 2022 has been restated to align with the change in presentation of inter-vertical eliminations. The inter-vertical eliminations revenue line reflects transactions where revenue in Cashback and Travel has also been recorded as cost of sales in other verticals.

Insurance EBITDA contribution margin increased from 57% to 58%, mixing into higher margin product lines, with growth in irrecoverable VAT offset with effective cost control.

Money saw a reduction in EBITDA contribution margin from 70% to 66%, primarily reflecting the Podium acquisition at the end of last year. 

Home Services EBITDA contribution margin improved from 63% to 68%, with redistribution of some operating costs away from the energy product line. 

Travel EBITDA contribution margin declined from 35% to 26% with reduced marketing spend in the prior year. 

Margin for Cashback is significantly lower than other verticals as a large proportion of commission is paid out to members as cashback. EBITDA contribution margin decreased from 16% to 13% reflecting higher levels of marketing spend to accelerate member growth, following the completion of product upgrades and enhancements to our onboarding process. 

Shared costs increased by 6% with tech and marketing efficiencies partly offsetting wider inflationary pressures.

Net finance expense

		2023 £m	2022 £m
Finance income
Loan notes		-	0.3
Bank deposits		0.1	0.0
		0.1	0.3
Finance expense
Revolving credit facility		(1.8)	(1.2)
Bank loan		(2.3)	(1.4)
Leases		(1.0)	(1.1)
Deferred consideration		(0.1)	(0.1)
Amounts payable to non-controlling interest		(0.1)	-
		(5.3)	(3.8)
Net finance expense		(5.2)	(3.5)

3.   Taxation

The effective tax rate of 21.5% (2022: 18.7%) is below the UK standard rate of 25.0% (2022: 19.0%). This is primarily due to the change in tax rate in April 2023, which has resulted in a blended rate for the year of 23.5%. The effective tax rate is lower than this blended rate due to an adjustment in respect of the prior period which has reduced the tax charge.  In 2022, the corporation tax consolidated effective tax rate of 18.7% was in line with the standard rate of 19%.

		2023 £m	2022 £m
Current tax
Current tax on income for the year		27.5	18.3
Adjustment in relation to prior period		(1.0)	0.4
		26.5	18.7
Deferred tax
Origination and reversal of temporary differences		(6.3)	(1.9)
Adjustment due to changes in corporation tax rate		(0.3)	(0.2)
Adjustment in relation to prior period		(0.1)	(0.7)
		(6.7)	(2.8)
Taxation		19.8	15.9

4.   Earnings per share

Basic earnings per share

Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing the profit or loss for the year attributable to ordinary equity holders of the Company, by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the year. The Company's own shares held by employee trusts are excluded when calculating the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding.

Diluted earnings per share

Diluted earnings per share is calculated by dividing the profit or loss for the year attributable to ordinary equity holders of the Company, by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the year plus the weighted average number of ordinary shares that would be issued on the conversion of all dilutive potential ordinary shares into ordinary shares.

Earnings per share

Basic and diluted earnings per share have been calculated on the following basis:

	2023 £m	2022 £m
Profit after taxation attributable to the owners of the Company	72.7	68.3
Basic weighted average ordinary shares in issue (millions)	536.4	536.5
Dilutive effect of share based instruments (millions)	2.7	2.4
Diluted weighted average ordinary shares in issue (millions)	539.1	538.9
Basic earnings per ordinary share (pence)	13.5	12.7
Diluted earnings per ordinary share (pence)	13.5	12.7
Adjusted basic and diluted earnings per share have been calculated as follows:
	2023 £m	2022 £m
Profit before tax	92.1	85.2
Adjusted for loss/(profit) before tax attributable to non-controlling interest	0.2	(1.2)
Profit before tax attributable to the owners of the Company	92.3	84.0
Amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets	21.1	11.3
Amortisation of acquisition related intangible assets attributable to non-controlling interest (see note 10)	(0.9)	(0.2)
	112.5	95.1
Estimated taxation at 23.5%* (2022: 19%)	(26.4)	(18.1)
Profit for adjusted EPS purposes	86.1	77.0
Adjusted basic earnings per share (pence)	16.0	14.4
Adjusted diluted earnings per share (pence)	16.0	14.3

* Estimated taxation at 23.5% is derived from the standard rate of corporation tax increasing from 19% to 25% in April 2023

5.   Dividends

			2023	2022
			£m	£m
Equity dividends on ordinary shares:
Final dividend for 2022: 8.6 pence per share (2021: 8.6 pence per share)			46.2	46.2
Interim dividend for 2023: 3.2 pence per share (2022: 3.1 pence per share)			17.2	16.6
Equity dividends			63.4	62.8
Proposed for approval (not recognised as a liability as at 31 December):
Final dividend for 2023: 8.9 pence per share (2022: 8.6 pence per share)			47.8	46.2

6.   Intangible assets

		Market related	Customer relationships	Technology related	Goodwill	Total
		£m	£m	£m	£m	£m
Cost
At 1 January 2022		169.6	21.2	123.4	289.1	603.3
Additions		-	-	13.2	-	13.2
Transfers		-	-	0.5	(0.5)	-
At 31 December 2022		169.6	21.2	137.1	288.6	616.5
Amortisation
At 1 January 2022		150.5	0.4	89.7	74.3	314.9
Charge for the year		2.8	2.1	16.8	-	21.7
At 31 December 2022		153.3	2.5	106.5	74.3	336.6
Carrying value
At 1 January 2022		19.1	20.8	33.7	214.8	288.4
At 31 December 2022		16.3	18.7	30.6	214.3	279.9
Cost
At 1 January 2023		169.6	21.2	137.1	288.6	616.5
Additions		-	-	10.8	-	10.8
Disposals		-	-	(26.6)	-	(26.6)
At 31 December 2023		169.6	21.2	121.3	288.6	600.7
Amortisation
At 1 January 2023		153.3	2.5	106.5	74.3	336.6
Charge for the year		8.2	6.7	15.5	-	30.4
Eliminated on disposal		-	-	(26.6)	-	(26.6)
At 31 December 2023		161.5	9.2	95.4	74.3	340.4
Carrying value
At 1 January 2023		16.3	18.7	30.6	214.3	279.9
At 31 December 2023		8.1	12.0	25.9	214.3	260.3

Disposals

Disposals in the current year include intangible assets with an original cost of £26.6m and a carrying value of £nil that are no longer in use were retired. There was no impact on profit or loss arising from this. There were no disposals in the comparative year.

Goodwill

At 31 December 2023, the Group had significant balances relating to goodwill as a result of acquisitions of businesses in the current and previous years. Goodwill balances are tested annually for impairment or if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of these assets may not be recoverable.

The Group is required to allocate goodwill between its cash generating units ('CGUs') that represent the lowest level at which goodwill is monitored for internal management purposes. These CGUs are Insurance, Money, Home Services, Travel and Cashback, all of which have been tested for impairment.

For all CGUs the present value of expected future cash flows has been calculated using management's best estimate, which is based on the Group's long-term plan, approved in January 2024, incorporating cost of sales, advertising and an allocation of overhead costs. The forecast assumes continued growth in each CGU; with many change programmes delivered in 2022 and 2023 we continue to expect to see the benefits in future years with market growth in a number of product lines.

In accordance with IAS 36 - Impairment of Assets, the Group is required to test goodwill for impairment annually by comparing the recoverable amount to the carrying value of the total assets allocated to each CGU. The recoverable amount is the higher of the CGU's value in use and its fair value less costs of disposal.

Our assessment concluded that there is headroom across all CGUs and the Directors have therefore concluded that no impairment of goodwill is required. After considering sensitivities, there is no reasonably possible change in key assumptions that could lead to the recoverable amount of any CGU falling below its carrying amount.

7.   Borrowings

	2023 £m	2022 £m
Non-current
Loan	-	30.0
Current
Revolving credit facility	4.5	4.0
Loan	30.0	10.0
	34.5	14.0

8.   Related party transactions

Peter Duffy, Robin Freestone and Rakesh Sharma in total received dividends from the Group totalling £31,697 (2022: Peter Duffy, Robin Freestone, Scilla Grimble, James Bilefield and Sally James in total received £41,649). 

9.   Commitments and contingencies

At 31 December 2023, the Group was committed to incur capital expenditure of £1.0m (2022: £0.3m).

Comparable with most companies of our size, the Group is a defendant in a small number of disputes incidental to its operations and from time to time is under regulatory scrutiny.

As a leading website operator, the Group occasionally experiences operational issues as a result of technological oversights that in some instances can lead to customer detriment, dispute and potentially cash outflows. The Group has a professional indemnity insurance policy in order to mitigate liabilities arising out of events such as this. The contingencies outlined above are not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Group.

10.  Non-controlling interest

In December 2022, the Group acquired control of Podium Solutions Limited which had previously been accounted for as a joint venture. Podium Solutions Limited is now consolidated as a subsidiary undertaking and a non-controlling interest is recognised within equity.

The Group also recognises a non-controlling interest in respect of Ice Travel Group Limited and its two wholly owned subsidiaries Travelsupermarket Limited and Icelolly Marketing Limited (together "Ice Travel Group").

The following table summarises the financial performance and position of these companies at the year end before any intra-group eliminations.

At December 2023	Podium Solutions Limited	Ice Travel Group	Total
Non-controlling interest	48%	33%
	£m	£m	£m
Non-current assets*	2.2	14.2	16.4
Current assets	0.8	11.2	12.0
Non-current liabilities	(1.9)	(6.6)	(8.5)
Current liabilities	(1.6)	(1.2)	(2.8)
Net assets	(0.5)	17.6	17.1
Net assets attributable to non-controlling interest	(0.2)	5.8	5.6
Revenue	0.1	19.5	19.6
(Loss)/Profit	(2.0)	1.7	(0.3)
Other comprehensive income	-	-	-
Total comprehensive income	(2.0)	1.7	(0.3)
(Loss)/Profit attributable to the non-controlling interest	(1.0)	0.6	(0.4)
Other comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interest	-	-	-
Total comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interest	(1.0)	0.6	(0.4)
Cash flows from operating activities	0.1	3.4	3.5
Cash flows from investing activities	(0.0)	(0.9)	(0.9)
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents	0.1	2.5	2.6

At December 2022	Podium Solutions Limited	Ice Travel Group	Total
Non-controlling interest	48%	33%
	£m	£m	£m
Non-current assets*	3.2	14.5	17.7
Current assets	0.3	8.3	8.6
Non-current liabilities	(1.8)	(4.9)	(6.7)
Current liabilities	(0.1)	(2.0)	(2.1)
Net assets	1.6	15.9	17.5
Net assets attributable to non-controlling interest	0.7	5.3	6.0
Revenue	-	14.6	14.6
Profit	-	3.1	3.1
Other comprehensive income	-	-	-
Total comprehensive income	-	3.1	3.1
Profit attributable to the non-controlling interest	-	1.0	1.0
Other comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interest	-	-	-
Total comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interest	-	1.0	1.0
Cash flows from operating activities	-	4.5	4.5
Cash flows from investing activities	-	(0.4)	(0.4)
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents	-	4.1	4.1

* Non-current assets for Ice Travel Group include £7.4m (2022: £7.4m) of goodwill in respect of Travelsupermarket Limited that was recognised on the Group's balance sheet prior to the acquisition of Ice Travel Group.

Loss and total comprehensive income for the year in respect of Podium Solutions Limited and Ice Travel Group include amortisation of intangibles relating to the acquisition of these companies by the Group of £2.2m (2022: £0.6m). Included in the loss (2022: profit) attributable to non-controlling interest and total comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interest is £0.9m (2022: £0.2m) of amortisation of acquired intangibles.

Appendix

Statutory Information

The financial information set out above does not constitute the Company's statutory accounts for the year ended 31 December 2023 or 31 December 2022 but is derived from those accounts. Statutory accounts for 2022 have been delivered to the registrar of companies, and those for 2023 will be delivered in due course. The auditor has reported on those accounts; their reports were (i) unqualified, (ii) did not include a reference to any matters to which the auditor drew attention by way of emphasis without qualifying their report and (iii) did not contain a statement under section 498 (2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

The annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 December 2023 will be posted to shareholders in March 2024. The results for the year ended 31 December 2023 were approved by the Board of Directors on 16 February 2024 and are audited. The Annual General Meeting will take place on 2 May 2024. The final dividend will be payable on 10 May 2024 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 2 April 2024.

Presentation of figures

Certain figures contained in this announcement, including financial information, have been subject to rounding adjustments. Accordingly, in certain instances, the sum or percentage change of the numbers contained in this announcement may not conform exactly with the total figure given.

 

END