Restore sees 'good momentum' in third quarter

(Sharecast News) - Document management, commercial relocation and electronics recycling company Restore reported "good momentum" across all of its business units on Thursday, with a further increase in activity levels and new business won across the group in the third quarter.

The AIM-traded firm said its revenues showed "sustained" improvement, with the third quarter ended 30 September increasing by 16% over the second quarter.

It said that, with "significantly improved" activity levels, furloughed staff were continuing to return to work, with 21% of its workforce on the Government Job Retention Scheme at the end of September, compared to 47% at the peak of the pandemic.

Restore said it was winning new customers across its business units in the quarter, as well as launching new products focussed on "flexible working trends" amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Profitability was also "substantially" improved, with third quarter profit around 50% higher than the second quarter, as the cost actions implemented in the second quarter continued to benefit the company's financial performance.

It said long-term structural cost reduction initiatives were being implemented, to drive sustainable improvements in efficiency and flexibility.

Cash generation was described as "strong", with a continued reduction in net debt, as its financial position was said to be underpinned by core recurring cash flows.

Restore said that provided it with the capability to accelerate its strategic progress, with a growing pipeline of potential acquisitions.

The company's property rationalisation plans were also continuing on track as planned, the board said.

Restore's directors said they remained "highly confident" in the group's prospects, adding that the firm was on track to deliver a stronger second-half profit.

"I am delighted with the strong trading across all our markets as we deliver critical services to our customers," said chief executive officer Charles Bligh.

"We focused on making decisions early in the pandemic that ensured we continued to deliver for customers safely and ensured we could bounce back strongly.

"These decisions are starting to deliver, and we are well placed to deliver increased profits in the second half of the year."

At 1117 BST, shares in Restore were up 8.72% at 347.9p.