Ashtead Group
Equity Market Cap (M) £19,988
Industrials
Will Shaw, Head of Investor Relations
Operating under the Sunbelt Rentals brand, Ashtead Group is one of the world’s largest equipment rental companies. Founded in 1947 and listed in London, the company rents everything from aerial platforms and power generation units to earthmoving machinery, serving both construction and non-construction markets across more than 1,500 locations. With one of the largest trucking fleets in North America, over 60% of contracts are fulfilled within 24 hours, supporting strong customer loyalty and premium pricing.
When we discussed the company’s growth strategy, it was explained that Ashtead’s focus is on increasing its “share of wallet”, a decades long trend of rent penetration taking share, where they are encouraging customers to use more of its 13 business lines. Cross-selling between general tool and speciality divisions is a key priority, with the latter targeting non-construction markets such as sports, events and emergency response, which are less cyclical and provide steadier, recurring demand.
We also talked about how Ashtead is working to shift market perception from a cyclical industrial company to a business services provider, reflecting the growing weight of non-construction revenue. The clustering strategy in the top 100 US metro areas remains central, building multiple nearby depots to share logistics and improve utilisation.
It was noted that growth remains largely organic, supported by greenfield openings and small bolt-on acquisitions rather than big mergers. North America accounts for over 90% of profits, with Canada managed as an extension of the US business. The UK remains more fragmented, with the focus there on improving returns rather than expansion. It seems from our meeting that it would be unlikely if they still had the UK organisation in 10 years’ time.
Compass Group
Equity Market Cap (M) £40,212
Consumer Discretionary
Agatha Donnelly, Head of Investor Relations
Compass Group is the world’s largest contract catering company, with a history dating back to 1941. Operating across more than 50,000 sites globally, it provides food and support services to clients in business and industry, healthcare, education, sports and leisure, and defence.
After a strong recovery following the pandemic, Compass expects to maintain steady revenue growth, targeting net new business of 4 to 5 per cent a year, up from around 3 per cent pre-Covid, within a 6 to 8 per cent overall revenue framework. Pricing remains the main driver as inflation trends normalise, while volume growth is expected to play a smaller role.
The group’s decentralised, locally driven model remains a key advantage, allowing site teams to tailor services to client needs. Contracts are structured to fit different risk and operational profiles, ranging from profit-and-loss sharing to cost-plus and hybrid models. The recently strengthened CRM system has improved pipeline management, while regional teams are fully accountable for their own profit and loss outcomes.
Europe remains a significant area of opportunity, particularly in healthcare, education and senior living, where an estimated 60 to 70 per cent of operations are still self-managed. For context, outsourcing self-managed operations to a contract catering company has been a significant structural tailwind in the industry. Expansion in these areas is being supported by targeted bolt-on acquisitions, such as Hoffmann’s in Germany, and selective investments in France, Australia, Japan and India. Compass continues to avoid large transformational deals, focusing instead on capability-led growth.
Givaudan
Equity Market Cap (M) CHF 31,163
Materials
Claudia Pedretti, Head of Investor Relations
Givaudan is the global leader in production of flavours, fragrances and active cosmetic ingredients. From its roots dating back to 1895 in Switzerland, Givaudan has grown from a small perfume maker into a global company, operating across more than 180 locations and supplying some of the biggest names in consumer goods.
We first discussed their recently lifted medium-term revenue growth target to 4-6 per cent a year between 2025 and 2030, up from 4-5 per cent previously. Around 70 per cent of past growth has come from higher volumes rather than pricing, with prices mainly adjusted to offset swings in raw material costs or currencies. Claudia explained that innovation and product mix are key drivers of value creation, helping Givaudan steadily outgrow its markets.
Fine Fragrance remains a big contributor, making up around 10 per cent of group sales. Demand has been strong, helped by premiumisation, new sales channels and rising interest in emerging markets. The Middle East has now become Givaudan’s second-largest fragrance market, while China continues to offer long-term promise given its low penetration and high barriers to entry.
In its Taste & Wellbeing category, natural colours are a standout opportunity, particularly in North America.
Even though natural colours can cost up to ten times more than synthetic ones, careful reformulation has helped protect margins.
R&D spending remains about 8 per cent of sales, while capital investment has increased to 4-5 per cent to support new capacity, digitalisation and automation. A new CEO, Christian Stammkoetter, will take the helm in March 2026 and is expected to focus on innovation-led growth.
CONSUMER DISCRETIONARYAmazon
Compass Group
LVMH
TechnoGym
CONSUMER STAPLESL'Oreal
Nestlé
FINANCIALSLloyds Banking
LSEG
HEALTH CAREEdwards Lifesciences
Haleon
Intuitive Surgical
Thermo Fisher Scientific
INDUSTRIALSAshtead Group
Experian
Schneider Electric
W.W. Grainger
MATERIALSGivaudan
