Poste Italiane announced the preliminary results for the fourth quarter and financial year 2023, which show record numbers.
fy-23 revenues at €12.0bn, increasing by 5.4% y/y (€3.2bn in q4-23, +4.1% y/y):
mail, parcel & distribution segment revenues at €3.7bn in fy-23, up 2.6% y/y compared to €3.7bn in fy-22 (€991m in q4-23, -1.2% y/y): stable mail revenues supported by repricing actions and improved mix; parcel revenues flat, +6% excluding impact of sennder italia deconsolidation and of gradual phase-out of the covid ppe logistics mandate, with volumes’ growth partially offset by lower pricing and unit cost.
financial services revenues at €5.2bn in fy-23 up 5.9% y/y (€1.4bn in q4-23, +14.9% y/y), mainly driven by nii and postal savings, recording a very solid performance in q4-23.
insurance services revenues at €1.6bn in fy-23, decreasing by 5.0% compared to fy-22 proforma basis, adjusted for ifrs 17 compliance (€425m in q4-23, -16.1% y/y), with life revenues affected by an unfair comparison with fy-22 proforma basis (ifrs 17 adjusted) marked by particularly volatile revenue components – mainly due to sudden and significant interest rate rises – and higher protection gwp supported by net insurance consolidation.
payments & mobile revenues continued to grow to €1.4bn1 in fy-23, up 27.5% y/y (€399m1 in q4-23, +11.6% y/y), with solid contributions from all product lines, the consolidation of lis and the new energy offer, reaching c.500,000 contracts, ahead of guidance.
fy-23 total costs to €9.4 billion1, increasing by 4.3% y/y (€2.7bn1 in q4-23, -2.5% y/y), including a €133 million instalment of the extraordinary employee bonus paid in q3-23 (of which €43 million accounted for in q4), with a continued cost management in the current inflationary environment, while supporting business growth.
ordinary hr costs[1] for the year were equal to €5.3 billion, increasing by 3.4% y/y (€1.4bn in q4-23, +3.5% y/y), with ongoing fte reduction partially offsetting the planned salary increase and a raised variable component linked to commercial results achieved.
Matteo Del Fante, Poste Italiane Chief Executive Officer commented: “For the full year, Poste Italiane has delivered a revenue increase of over 5% year-on-year, nearing €12 billion, alongside a record 2023 operating profit of €2.62 billion, effectively doubling 2017 EBIT. Our diversified, resilient and sustainable business model along with confirmed cost discipline is solid proof of our unique and winning strategy.
In the Mail, Parcel & Distribution division we have reached segment breakeven for FY-23, ahead of guidance.
In Financial Services, revenues are at €5.2 billion, with Total Financial Assets of €581 billion, underpinned by retail net inflows of over €1.2 billion, driven by strong insurance net flows that outperformed the market.
In Insurance Services we posted positive results, with confirmed net flows outperforming the market and a resiliently low lapse rate in a challenging environment.
In Payments & Mobile all business lines delivered solid results also thanks to the LIS consolidation and once again achieving double-digit growth in operating profitability. The PosteEnergia offer has been very well received by the market, reaching around 500 thousand contracts signed to date.
In light of these impressive results, we intend to raise our full year dividend for the fourth consecutive year to a proposed €0.80 per share – up around 13% compared to our recent guidance of €0.71 – and distribute a proposed total of €1.0 billion in dividends to shareholders for 2023, pending approvals, and up 23% vs 2022.
I am very proud of our employees for their commitment and enthusiasm and together we have built strong foundations.
We are Italy’s leading client-focused platform company, serving the needs of Italians both physically through our extensive post office branch network and PuntoPoste touch points as well as virtually through our vast digital presence.
Poste Italiane is poised to embrace the future, leveraging the strengths of our results and the resilience of our business, supported by our strategic vision which has been proven correct.
I am sure that we will continue to evolve and deliver excellence to all our stakeholders and we will be presenting on March 20 our new 2024-2028 plan ushering in the next stage of Poste Italiane’s growth story.”
