LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Pendragon issued its half-year results for the six months ended 30 June on Tuesday, reporting a 0.9% like-for-like fall in group revenue to £2.41bn, but a 0.2% improvement in total group revenue.
The London-listed automotive online retailer said a "small decline" in its UK motor business was offset by growth in Pinewood Software and its leasing division.

Used revenue was down 0.9% on a like-for-like basis, while used vehicle revenue excluding nearly-new vehicles grew 3.1%.

Gross profit dropped for used vehicles by 16.1% on a like-for-like basis, which the board said would be driven primarily by margin pressure in the nearly-new premium car segments.

New revenue slid 1.7% on a like-for-like basis, with Pendragon saying it outperformed the market, which was down 6.3% in the period.

Like-for-like gross profit in the new vehicles division slipped 6.0%.

Aftersales revenue was off 2.4%, and gross profit was down 2.7% for the division, both on a like-for-like basis.

In software, revenue rose 7.7%, while gross profit improved 8.8%, and in leasing, revenue surged 35.1%, with gross profit rising 64.0%..

Pendragon's operating costs lost 2.1% on a like-for-like basis, with "significant" cost savings being made of £5m during the period.

Underlying profit before tax was £28.4m, which was down £20.1m as the board expected, due to performance in the UK motor division.

The board said it had maintained a "robust" balance sheet, with net debt-to-underlying EBITDA at 0.8x at period end.

"We are gaining momentum as we lead the transformation to fully online used car retailing," said chief executive Trevor Finn.

"This will give us greater self-determination and deliver more reliable, sustainable earnings."

Finn said Pendragon's "industry leading" software company gave the firm unique technology and expertise, to reformat its business model.

"We are also continuing to reallocate our capital into higher return areas to increase shareholder value.

"Underlying profit before tax was £28.4m for the first half and we remain in line with expectations."

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