Orders, revenue, profit and cash flow all improved at Rolls-Royce in 2022, according to full year results, though its new CEO has said the company is “capable of much more.”
The Derby firm hailed strong new order wins during the year in Civil Aerospace and Defence and a record order book in Power Systems.
Meanwhile the business posted an underlying operating profit of £652m, £238m higher than the prior year with the increase driven by Civil Aerospace and Power Systems, and underlying revenues of £12.7bn, up from £10.9bn.
The firm also highlighted free cash flow from continuing operations of £505m, £2bn higher than the prior year, led by engine flying hour recovery.
Furthermore, net debt of £3.3bn was down from £5.2bn at end 2021, due to disposals and improved cash flow.
Looking ahead, Rolls-Royce is focusing on a transformation programme to deliver further performance improvements from 2023.
Tufan Erginbilgic, CEO, said: “It is an honour to lead Rolls-Royce, one of the world’s most trusted brands and a business with strong positions in growing markets. Our people take tremendous pride in our innovation and engineering solutions. Together, we must now move at pace and harness that pride to create a high-performing, growing and competitive business.
“While our performance improved in 2022, we are capable of much more. Our transformation programme will improve our efficiency and commercial outcomes, and deliver a sustainable reduction in working capital. This will require a winning culture, underpinned by more effective performance management and a shared determination to deliver cash and reduce debt. Our success will enable us to reward investors for their support and invest in future growth.
“Our transformation programme is already underway and is moving at pace. It will include a strategic review so that we can prioritise our investment towards the most profitable opportunities. We will report the findings together with our medium-term goals in the second half of this year.”
