Vinci Profit Falls Hit by French Transport Tax

By Cristina Gallardo

Vinci posted a drop in net profit for the first six months of 2024 after a new tax in France hit long-distance travel operators.

The French construction and infrastructure company said Thursday that net profit for the first half of the year fell 4.5% to 1.995 billion euros ($2.16 billion) compared with the same period of the prior year.

The group said its business was affected by a new tax on long-distance transport infrastructure operators in France, which almost exclusively targets motorway concession companies.

Revenue increased 4.4% to EUR33.775 billion.

However, Vinci's Immobilier's revenue fell 10% to EUR0.5 billion amid a crisis in France's property development sector.

Earnings before interests, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 6.9% to EUR5.67 billion.

Analysts expected net profit, revenue and Ebitda at EUR2.02 billion, EUR33.86 billion and EUR5.48 billion, respectively, according to consensus estimates provided by Visible Alpha.

Vinci's order intake amounted to EUR33.9 billion, an 9% increase on year, while its order book jumped 9% to EUR67.3 billion as of the end of June, reaching a record high.

The company said it expects revenue to rise again in 2024, but that growth is likely to be more limited than in 2023. Operating earnings are expected to increase as well, and net profit could be close to the level achieved in 2023.

Write to Cristina Gallardo at cristina.gallardo@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 25, 2024 12:32 ET (16:32 GMT)

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