By Frank Prenesti
Date: Tuesday 11 Dec 2018
LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Equipment rental company Ashtead Group on Tuesday said it expected full year results to beat expectations after interim pre-tax profit rose 25% to £610m.
Group rental revenue increased 18% to £2.04bn for the six months and underlying pre-tax profit increased 19% to £633m, both at constant exchange rates.
The interim dividend was increased 18% to 6.5p a share.
"We have invested £1.06bn in capital and a further £362m on bolt-on acquisitions in the period which has added 80 locations and resulted in a rental fleet growth of 15%," said chief executive Geoff Drabble.
"This investment reflects the structural growth opportunity that we continue to see in the business as we broaden our product offering and geographic reach, and increase market share."
"Our business is performing well in supportive end markets. Accordingly, we expect full year results to be ahead of our prior expectations and the board continues to look to the medium term with confidence."