LONDON (Alliance News) - Speedy Hire PLC on Tuesday said it anticipates adjusted pretax profit for the year to end March 31 will be ahead of its previous expectations.
The tools, equipment and plant hire services company said its revenue for the three months ended December was up 11% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis.
Speedy Hire said it benefitted from the timing of the Christmas holiday period, and has reduced its overheads under its recovery plan to improve the efficiency of operations. The group said its net debt at the end of its third quarter was lower than at the half-year end.
Speedy Hire said the integration of its Lloyds British Testing Ltd acquisition, announced in December, was progressing well, with a number of revenue and cost synergies expected to be realised. However, the results of Lloyds British Testing will not materially affect the underlying pretax profit figure for the year to end March 31.
Speedy Hire pointed to a number of customer service initiatives it has implemented, improving revenue and allowing it to retain major framework contracts, such as the contract renewal with Carillion PLC. This contract could be worth up to GBP45.0 million over three years, Speedy Hire said.
In light of the improving revenue trend and better operational efficiency, Speedy Hire said it expects adjusted pretax profit for the year to be ahead of prior expectations.
Shares in Speedy Hire were up 4.9% at 53.25 pence on Tuesday morning.
By Hannah Boland; hannahboland@alliancenews.com; @Hannaheboland
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Speedy Hire (SDY)