Saga (SAGA) H2 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Underlying revenue rose 13% to £732.7m and underlying profit before tax more than doubled to £38.2m; net debt fell £74.5m to £637.2m.

• Cruise and Travel returned to profit, while Insurance remained under pressure from claims inflation, lower policy volumes and margin erosion.

• Strategic priorities include stabilising Insurance, growing Cruise and Travel, reducing debt and pursuing capital-light partnerships.

Financial highlights

• Revenue was £741.1m, up 12%; Trading EBITDA increased 26% to £116.5m.

• Underlying profit before tax was £38.2m under IFRS 17, up 146%; under previous IFRS it was £45.3m, up 111%.

• Loss before tax narrowed to £129.0m from £272.7m; loss after tax was £113.0m, versus £273.1m.

• Underlying EPS was 30.0p under IFRS 17 and 37.8p under previous IFRS; reported loss per share was 80.8p.

• Available Operating Cash Flow rose to £143.8m from £54.9m, driven by Cruise and Travel cash generation and lower central costs.

Outlook and guidance

• FY2024/25 is expected to be transitional; overall underlying profit before tax is forecast broadly flat as Cruise and Travel growth offsets a lower Insurance outlook.

• Ocean Cruise expects higher EBITDA excluding overheads from continued load-factor and per-diem growth; River Cruise and Travel expect revenue and passenger growth.

• Insurance Broking underlying profit before tax is expected materially lower in FY2024/25; Underwriting expects a lower gross current-year combined operating ratio and low-single-digit profit before tax.

• Net debt is expected to decline further; debt reduction remains a priority even under a severe but plausible downside scenario.