Europe Movers: Diploma, Smiths, Vodafone

Inga Muller
20 May, 2025
Frankfurt

Vodafone Group traded up 0.8% to 73.06 pence after the UK-based wireless telecom operator reported fiscal year 2025 results.

Revenue edged up to €37.45 billion from €36.72 billion, net income swung to a loss of €4.17 billion from a profit of €1.14 billion, and earnings per share swung to a loss of 15.94 cents from a profit of 4.21 cents a year ago.

The company proposed a dividend of 4.5 cents per share for fiscal year 2025, down from 9.0 cents per share in the previous year.

In addition, the telecom company completed a share buyback program of up to €2.0 billion of the proceeds from the sale of Vodafone Spain and authorized a new share buyback program of up to €2.0 billion of the proceeds from the sale of Vodafone Italy.

The total capital returns to shareholders in fiscal year 2025 were €3.7 billion.

Vodafone declared a final dividend of 2.25 cents per share payable on August 1 to shareholders on record on June 6.

Diploma PLC soared 14.6% to 4.840 pence after the UK solutions provider to industrial and life sciences end markets reported half-year 2025 results.

Revenue surged to £728.5 million from £638.3 million, profit jumped to £95.8 million from £57.7 million, and diluted earnings per share rose to 71.2 pence from 43.0 pence a year ago.

The company estimated full-year revenue to grow 8%, revised higher from its previous forecast of 6% increase, compared to £1.36 billion a year earlier.

Smiths Group plc advanced 1.5% to 2,084 pence after the UK engineering company released a third-quarter trading update.

“Revenue accelerated to 10.6%, leading to organic revenue growth for the nine-month period of 9.6%,” the company said in a release to investors.

The engineering company estimated full-year revenue to increase towards the top end of its 6% to 8% guidance range and continues to expect margin expansion of 40 to 60 basis points.

To date, the company has completed £260 million of its £500 million share buyback and remains on track to complete the program by the end of the calendar year.