North East vehicle hire firm Redde Northgate said it expects to post pre-tax profits of at least £92m, lifted by the merger of the two businesses last year.
The Darlington firm, which entered the FTSE 250 in April, has published a pre-close trading update for the year ended April 30, outlining how momentum has continued to build in the second half of the year.
Against the backdrop of Covid-19, including the most recent lockdowns in the 海角视频, vehicles on hire grew 2% across the group in the second half of the year, and the used vehicle market has also remained strong.
The firm said it continued to be impacted by reduced volumes through the period, but it has seen a “significant” pick-up following the easing of lockdown restrictions in early April.
Based on unaudited results, underlying revenues were approximately 51% higher than last year and total group revenues were approximately 43% higher.
It said the rising revenues year have primarily been triggered to the inclusion of Redde since the merger on February 21 2020, as well as light commercial vehicle rental and sales growth.
Thanks to stronger than expected performance in the second half of the year, the board now expects underlying pre-tax profits to be moderately above the top end of analyst estimates, and not less than £92m.
The group also said it continues to make excellent progress on delivering its strategic initiatives, with the merger integration so far making savings of £14.6m against the 2022 target of £15m.
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Directors said the group’s financial position remains strong, leading it to take the opportunity after the year-end to acquire around 2,000 vehicles from a Scottish vehicle rental business for approximately £25m.
Martin Ward, CEO of Redde Northgate said: “The second half of the year has delivered a strong set of results. The demand for LCV rental and used LCV sales has seen an uplift in H2 and sets the business up well going into our new financial year.
“Our integration plans have almost delivered the revised targets we set out on cost savings, well ahead of time, and well below the one-time cash costs to implement. This has placed the business in a strong position as we face into a number of opportunities to deliver our unique integrated mobility platform proposition.
"However, I recognise there is still much more to do to deliver the full benefits of our strategy, and we remain focussed on our strategic initiatives.
“I am particularly thankful to our people who have worked tirelessly throughout the year to deliver exceptional service to our customers.
“Many of our colleagues have taken up the SAYE share scheme, launched this year, and it’s good to see they have the opportunity to share in the future success of the business.
“Our entry into the FTSE250 index in April was a milestone we are all proud to have achieved. We enter FY2022 from a position of strength, and we look forward to updating on progress as we continue to execute on our strategy. ”