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Highlights

  • Metcash is a wholesaler that deals in food, liquor, hardware, grocery and automotive industry.
  • The company registered positive sales performance across hardware, food and liquor industry in the first seven weeks of FY24.
  • The top 10 shareholders of MTS hold around 46.79% stake in the company and top four hold around 28.33% of the shareholding.

Metcash Limited (ASX: MTS) is a consumer staples distribution and retail company. The company is a wholesaler to independent retailers in the automotive, hardware, food, liquor and grocery industry. In the financial year 2023 (FY23), ending on 30 April 2023, MTS registered Revenue of over AUD 15.8 billion. The sales revenue in FY23 increased by 4.2% annually, and underlying profit after tax gained by 2.6% over the previous corresponding period. Moreover, the gross margin of Metcash rose from 11.2% in FY22 to 11.8% in FY23.

All three pillars of the company – food, liquor and hardware delivered a positive performance in FY23, driven by the growing demand, strategic acquisitions and strategic initiatives.

The momentum continued in FY24 as the company recorded a 6.8% year-on-year increase in food sales, excluding tobacco sales, during the first seven weeks of FY24. Meanwhile, hardware sales grew by 5.0% year-on-year, and liquor sales jumped by 1.2% year-on-year during the same timeframe.

Dividend

Metcash distributes dividends on a semi-annual basis. The company recently announced a final dividend of AUD 0.110 per share. The ex-dividend date is 18 July 2023, and the dividend pay date is 21 August 2023. The dividend declared is fully franked.

Top 10 shareholders of MTS

The top 10 shareholders of Metcash form approximately 46.79% of the total shareholdings in the company, and the top four shareholders hold around 28.33% stake in the company. . Perpetual Investment Management Limited holds the maximum stake in MTS with a shareholding of around 8.80%. Colonial First State Investments Limited have approximately 7.44% stake in the organisation.

Outlook

Metcash said it is currently focused on growing customer network and stores, making investments and improving value to strengthen network competitiveness. The company expects to report growth in the coming years, driven by increasing opportunities, diversified operations, and fundamentals in all pillars, among other factors.

MTS share performance

Metcash shares closed 0.81% higher at AUD 3.75 per share on 17 July with a market capitalisation of AUD 3.59 billion. From the beginning of 2023 to date, the share price of MTS has dropped by 5.77% and in the past one year, it has fallen by 11.76%.

The 52-week high of MTS is AUD 4.35 per share, recorded on 12 December 2022, and the 52-week low is AUD 3.45 per share, recorded on 7 June 2023. The current stock price is 8.70% higher than its 52-week low and 13.79% lower than the 52-week high.

Note 1: Past performance is neither an Indicator nor a guarantee of future performance.

Note 2: The reference date for all price data, and currency, is 17 July 2023. The reference data in this report has been partly sourced from REFINITIV.