Engie, the prominent French utility company, has recently revised its full-year 2024 guidance upward, buoyed by lower-than-anticipated net recurring financial costs and a robust financial performance for the first half of the year ending June 30. The company's new projections indicate a net recurring income group share ranging between €5 billion and €5.6 billion, a significant increase compared to the earlier forecast of €4.2 billion to €4.8 billion.
In the first half of 2024, Engie reported a net recurring income group share of €3.77 billion, a decrease from €4.05 billion in the same period the previous year. Furthermore, for the entire year, net financial costs are now expected to fall between €1.9 billion and €2.2 billion, down from earlier estimates of €2.4 billion to €2.7 billion.
CEO Catherine MacGregor commented on this positive development, stating, "In the face of a market returning to normal conditions, Engie has once more delivered very strong H1 results, enabling us to raise our full year 2024 guidance." The first half was notably marked by the successful integration of Broad Reach Power, culminating in the completion of 800MW of new battery capacity in the US.
This segment has driven significant advancements in Engie’s renewable energy initiatives, where the company has rapidly made progress, adding another 1GW of capacity in the first half and maintaining nearly 7GW of ongoing projects as of the end of June. In a significant shift, Engie has reported a turnaround in net income group share, which surged to €1.94 billion in the first half, rebounding from a net loss of €847 million recorded a year earlier.
This remarkable change can be largely attributed to the absence of negative costs associated with nuclear provisions that impacted the previous year’s financials. Revenue for the company registered at €37.53 billion, a drop from €47.03 billion the year before. Analysts at Barclays weighed in on Engie's recent performance, noting, "Engie reported decent 1H24 results today with a surprise 2024 guidance upgrade." They highlighted that the net recurring income group share of €3.8 billion was 19% higher than anticipated.
The analysts further projected that the company’s stock would likely perform well against the European utility sector SX6P, especially as investors had not been expecting such a substantial revision in 2024 guidance amid the current French political climate. As of the afternoon trading session, Engie's stock was performing positively, with a 4% increase, reflecting an uptick of $0.59, bringing its price to $15.11 and indicating a growth percentage of 4.10%.
Overall, these developments at Engie signal a promising outlook for the company as it continues to adapt and thrive in the evolving energy landscape..