Partner Article

Vertu puts its foot down

FAST-GROWING motor dealer Vertu today said it was well placed to accelerate though tough times ahead after seeing its annual pre-tax profits soar from under £1m to £4.6m.

The Newcastle company was boosted by the scrappage scheme in the year ending 28 February 2010, it said in its interim results, as sales climbed 7.6% to £818.9m.

The firm invested £18.7m in acquisitions and freehold property purchases during the period and its net cash balance at the end of its financial year stood at £23.5m, a figure which was boosted by £30m in equity it raised in June 2009.

Meanwhile, Vertu, which sells new and used vehicles at 62 outlets across the country, said March had seen car retail volumes up 16.1% and trading in April has been in line with expectations.

The company envisages trading in the coming months to hindered by the impact of the scrappage scheme ending and the strength of the Euro.

However, chief executive Robert Forrester said the group was well placed to continue growing over the next year.

He said: “2009/10 proved to be a much stronger trading period than anticipated due to the twin supports of the Government’s scrappage programme and the strengthening of used car values. The profitability of the Group has increased substantially with profit before tax rising from £0.07m to £4.6m.

“The Group’s strong cash position and continued cash generation means we can continue our growth in 2010 and beyond and gain the scale benefits of this growth.

Current trading has been robust. Although the economic and political uncertainty in the United Kingdom poses challenges, the Board believe the Group is well positioned to continue to build a sustainable, scalable business that delivers further shareholder value, reflected in the fact that we have announced today that we intend to pay a maiden dividend in this current financial year.“

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .