Mitie boasts another record year thanks to ‘Project Pegasus’ anti-shoplifting scheme

Mitie Group has achieved another year of record turnover thanks to new contracts and the outsourcer’s work tackling retail crime.

The FTSE 250 group saw revenues rocket 11 per cent year-on-year to £4.5billion in the 12 months ending March, smashing last year’s record haul of £4.05billion.

Organic revenue grew by 7.1 per cent on the back of contract re-pricing, and deals for engineering and maintenance services from firms such as Amazon, BAE Systems, and Lloyds Banking Group.

Mitie, whose head office is based in London’s Shard skyscraper, gained £6.2billion in contract wins or renewals during the period, compared to £4.3billion the prior year.

It has recently secured work from public sector organisations like the Department for Transport, the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, and Spanish airport operator Aena.

The London-listed business also launched ‘Project Pegasus’ in conjunction with the Home Office and multiple UK retailers to tackle shoplifting, which has soared to the highest levels across England and Wales since records began.

Under the initiative, Mitie provides officers to some high-risk shops and runs security operation centres (SOCs), which retail staff can contact if they suspect a robbery is taking place.

It said it was employing ‘cutting-edge technologies’ as part of the projects, such as biometrics, AI video analytics, and cloud-based systems.

Mitie’s turnover was additionally boosted by acquisitions, with the largest two being JCA Engineering and fire and security technology provider GBE Converge Group.

The healthy revenue growth, combined with rising margins, helped Mitie’s operating profits jump by 30 per cent to £166million.

Phil Bentley, chief executive of Mitie, remarked: ‘We are pleased with our strong performance in FY24, having delivered record revenue, operating margin expansion, and a good return on invested capital.’

‘Mitie is a cash-generative business with a robust balance sheet, and we are committed to investing in accelerated growth, as well as returning surplus funds to shareholders via share buybacks.’

The FTSE 250 company is undertaking another £50million buyback scheme and plans to pay a 3 pence per share final dividend, meaning its full-year dividend has soared by 38 per cent.

Mitie Group shares were 0.7 per cent higher at 120.8p on Thursday morning and have risen by around 23 per cent since the year began.

Adam Vettese, analyst at eToro, said: ‘With contract values going into next year running over £2billion higher than last year, investors could see scope for the strong performance to continue.’