RS Group
Website:
RS Group
Index:
FTSE 250
EPIC: RS1
Supersector:
Industrial Goods and Services
Sector:
Support Services
Subsector:
Industrial Suppliers
Market Cap:
£3.1B
Payout Frequency: Semi-Annual
RS Group Dividend Analysis and Summary
Key dividend details
- Dividend declared: Interim dividend of 8.7p per share (up 2% vs 8.5p in H1 2024/25)
- Ex-dividend date: 20/11/2025
- Record date: 21/11/2025
- Payment date: 02/01/2026
- Cash cost: c. £40.8m (company estimate)
- Policy: Progressive dividend; interim set at ~40% of prior full-year dividend (interim 8.7p is ~39% of FY 2024/25 total of 22.4p: 13.9p final + 8.5p interim)
Coverage and cash flow support
- EPS cover: H1 adjusted EPS 17.6p covers the 8.7p interim by ~2.0x (H1 basis)
- Free cash flow: H1 adjusted FCF £86m covers the c.£40.8m interim payout by ~2.1x
- Balance sheet: Net debt £333m; net debt/adjusted EBITDA 1.0x; undrawn committed facilities £335m
Management guidance and outlook
- Board reiterates a progressive dividend policy and expects dividend cover to improve over time with stronger profit and cash flow
- Full-year outlook unchanged; consensus for FY to 31 Mar 2026: revenue £2,925m, adjusted PBT £240m
Short analysis: sustainability and growth
- Sustainability: The interim uplift is modest and well supported by cash generation (107% adjusted operating cash conversion) and low leverage. H1 FCF comfortably funds the interim payout.
- Earnings trajectory: Like-for-like revenue down 1% and adjusted operating profit down 8% in H1; however gross margin expanded (+40bps) and Q2 returned to slight growth. Management maintains FY guidance, suggesting stabilisation.
- Capital allocation: Continued organic investment (FY25/26 planned £35–£40m opex and ~£50m capex) alongside restructuring/integration benefits (>£47m cumulative since Apr-23) should enhance operating leverage. No competing uses (e.g., large M&A or buybacks) signalled that would pressure the dividend.
- Cover trend: With expected improvement in profits/cash flow and targets of >80% cash conversion, dividend cover has room to strengthen from current comfortable levels.
Structural or policy developments relevant to dividends
- Portfolio simplification: Disposal of sales activities in Finland, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia (gain £3.4m); modest scale and unlikely to affect dividend capacity.
- Distrelec integration: Ongoing; distribution centre consolidation complete with anticipated cost savings > original case, supporting margins and cash.
- No changes to dividend policy, no share consolidation; EBT share purchases relate to employee schemes (not capital return).
Risks and flags to dividend stability
- Macro/end-market softness: PMIs largely below 50 in EMEA; like-for-like revenue still slightly negative; continued weakness could cap earnings growth.
- Execution risks: US digital commerce upgrade temporarily hurt web revenue (improving but still a watch area); continued programme delivery is key to margin recovery.
- FX sensitivity: Unhedged translation exposure; a 1c move in EUR impacts annual adjusted PBT by ~£1.7m and USD by ~£0.5m.
- Inventory/working capital: Provision rate up to 13.4% (from 12.6%); still well-managed with strong cash conversion, but a deterioration in demand could pressure working capital.
- Geopolitical/tariff exposure: Particularly Mexico and broader Americas; could affect gross margin and demand timing.
Read more
RS Group Annual Dividend Yield - 3.37%
Dividends Used in Calculation:
| Ex-Dividend Date |
Payment Date |
Type |
Amount |
Currency |
| 21/11/2024 |
03/01/2025 |
Interim |
8.50p |
GBX |
| 12/06/2025 |
25/07/2025 |
Final |
13.90p |
GBX |
Total (Annual Dividends Per Share):
22.40p
Dividend Yield =
Annual Dividends Per Share (22.40p)
÷ Share Price (664.5p)
= 3.37%
RS Group Dividend History
| Ex Dividend Date |
Payment Date |
Type |
Amount |
Currency |
| 20/11/2025 |
02/01/2026 |
Interim |
8.7000p |
GBX |
| 12/06/2025 |
25/07/2025 |
Final |
13.90p |
GBX |
| 21/11/2024 |
03/01/2025 |
Interim |
8.50p |
GBX |
| 13/06/2024 |
19/07/2024 |
Final |
13.70p |
GBX |
| 23/11/2023 |
05/01/2024 |
Interim |
8.30p |
GBX |
| 15/06/2023 |
21/07/2023 |
Final |
13.70p |
GBX |
| 24/11/2022 |
06/01/2023 |
Interim |
7.20p |
GBX |
| 16/06/2022 |
22/07/2022 |
Final |
11.60p |
GBX |
| 16/06/2022 |
22/07/2022 |
Q4 |
11.60 |
|
| 25/11/2021 |
07/01/2022 |
Interim |
6.40p |
GBX |
| 17/06/2021 |
23/07/2021 |
Final |
9.80p |
GBX |
| 07/01/2021 |
29/01/2021 |
2nd Interim |
6.10p |
GBX |
| 19/11/2020 |
18/12/2020 |
Interim |
9.50p |
GBX |
| Year |
Interim |
Final |
Currency |
Total |
Change |
| 2024 |
8.500 |
13.700 |
GBX |
22.200 |
0.900 |
| 2023 |
8.300 |
13.700 |
GBX |
22.000 |
-27.630 |
| 2022 |
7.200 |
11.600 |
|
30.400 |
36.320 |
| 2021 |
6.400 |
9.800 |
GBX |
22.300 |
134.730 |
| 2020 |
9.500 |
|
GBX |
9.500 |
|
RS Group Dividend Calculator
RS Group Dividend Growth
| Dividend Growth (1Y) |
1.8%
|
| Dividend CAGR (5Y) |
18.93%
|
| Years of Growth |
2
|
| Payout Ratio |
66.31%
|
| Buyback Yield |
1%
|
| Shareholder Yield |
4.42%
|
| P/E Ratio (TTM) | 19.37 |
|---|
| Forward P/E | 17.13 |
|---|
| P/FCF | 12.46 |
|---|
| Earnings Yield | 5.16% |
|---|
| FCF Yield | 8.03% |
|---|
| ROE | 11.71% |
|---|
| ROCE | 12.18% |
|---|
| Profit Margin | 5.52% |
|---|
| Operating Margin | 8.01% |
|---|
| Gross Margin | 43.04% |
|---|