Travis Perkins Increases Profit Forecast Despite Challenges

(Reuters) -UK building materials supplier Travis Perkins raised its profit forecast on Thursday for the third time in five months on the back of pent-up demand and said it was navigating supply chain and cost inflation challenges “very capably”.

Britain’s construction industry showed signs of a strong recovery during the first half of 2021 before a spike in raw material prices and supply chain disruptions stalled growth in recent months.

The country’s largest seller of building materials said it was navigating the “well-documented supply chain and cost inflation challenges very capably”, adding that end-market demand remained robust.

Travis Perkins, whose merchanting business involves the sale of wood, sand and all types of building materials, said like-for-like revenue growth was 13.1% in the third quarter.

The FTSE mid-cap firm now expects at least 340 million pounds ($467.16 million) in adjusted operating profit for the year ending Dec. 31, 2021, above the company-compiled analysts’ estimate of 316 million pounds.

($1 = 0.7278 pounds)

(Reporting by Aby Jose Koilparambil in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)