Maersk Records $6.5 Billion EBIT in Third-Best Financial Year

A.P. Moller Maersk, an integrated logistics company has recorded a USD 6.5 billion earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) to post strong financial results for 2024 with growth across all segments and significantly improved profitability

According to the company, this signifies a 65 percent increase as results were driven by higher container demand and elevated freight rates in Ocean, top line and volume growth in Terminals and solid improvements in most Logistics and Services products.

Given the strong results and the strength of the balance sheet, the Board of Directors proposes a dividend of DKK 1,120/share and also separately announced the initiation of a share buy-back programme of up to around USD 2bn to be executed over 12 months.

Vincent Clerc, chief executive officer of the company said the ability to navigate shifting circumstances and ensure steady supply chains for customers was tested throughout 2024, as the efforts were rewarded with record-high customer satisfaction.

Clerc said the company successfully capitalised on increased demand while enhancing productivity and rigorously managing costs all of which contributed to our strong financial performance.

“With three strong businesses Ocean, Logistics and Services, and Terminals plus integrated offerings across the supply chain, we are uniquely positioned to support our customers in an era where geopolitical changes and disruptions continue to reinforce the need for resilient supply chains,” he said.

Clerc said the profitability in Ocean improved compared to the previous year supported by a significant increase in freight rates reflecting the situation in the Red Sea and strong volume demand.

He pointed out that high utilisation and cost discipline ensured that Ocean operations were streamlined and able to tackle uncertainties. Operational costs were stable year-on-year, offsetting the increased costs and additional bunker consumption of re-routing the network south of the Cape of Good Hope.

Logistics and Services demonstrated resilience in 2024 with momentum building steadily each quarter culminating in volume growth, higher revenue and improved EBIT margin compared to 2023.

Revenue grew 7 percent supported by solid growth in Warehousing, Air and First Mile product categories while profitability benefitted from progress in most products.

Terminals delivered its best-ever financial results in 2024 with EBITDA and EBIT reaching record highs. This was driven by significant top-line growth due to strong volumes, inflation offsetting tariff increases, a better customer and product mix, and higher storage revenue.

Guidance is based on the expectation that global container volume growth in 2025 will be around 4 percent and that Maersk will grow in line with the market. For the financial guidance, Maersk assumes that the Red Sea re-opens mid-year for the low end of the guidance and re-opens at year-end for the high end. Maersk’s outlook for 2025 is subject to considerable macroeconomic uncertainties impacting container volume growth and freight rates.

Maersk returned USD 1.6bn to shareholders during 2024 through dividends and share buy-backs. The demerger and spin-off of Svitzer returned USD 1.1bn to shareholders through a dividend in-kind.

In February 2024, the Board of Directors decided to suspend the share buy-back programme, with a re-initiation to be reviewed once market conditions in Ocean are settled. The Board of Directors has decided to initiate a share buy-back programme of up to DKK 14.4bn (around USD 2bn), to be executed over 12 months.