Shares in tool hire company Speedy Hire plunged after a nasty profit warning.
The company, which rents out everything from hammer drills and LED lights to generators, said it has been hit by a slowdown in trading, contract delays and a mild winter reducing demand for heating products.
As a result, it expects profits to be lower than previously thought. Shares tumbled 18.1 per cent, or 6.5p, to 29.5p.
Speedy Hire has been hit by challenges across the construction sector. Revenues from its national customers – some of the UK’s biggest contractors – rose 3 per cent in the third quarter to December 31.
But this was less than the 5 per cent growth it reported in the first half of its financial year.
Profits hit: Speedy Hire said it has been hit by a slowdown in trading, contract delays and a mild winter reducing demand for heating products
And while the group has secured deals, it warned that it will take longer than expected for revenues to come in.
While investors appeared concerned by the latest update, some in the City remained optimistic.
‘Although disappointing, this is due to events beyond Speedy Hire’s immediate control,’ said Peel Hunt’s Andrew Nussey.
And analysts at Liberum said that while ‘sentiment will no doubt be adversely affected by today’s update’ the company has shown it has ‘levers for growth’.
On the wider market, the FTSE 100 rose 0.4 per cent, or 33.57 points, to 7666.31 and the FTSE 250 edged up 0.2 per cent, or 38.34 points, to 19349.5.
Private equity firm 3i made gains following an upgrade from analysts at Barclays ahead of its third-quarter update on Thursday.
The investment bank said the focus will be on Action – the Dutch non-food discount retailer and most successful company in the blue-chip firm’s portfolio – which should report strong trading over Christmas. Shares rose 2.6 per cent, or 64p, to 2497p.
Stock Watch – Argentex
Shares in currency firm Argentex crashed to a record low after it warned that tough market conditions and the rising cost of doing business will hit profits.
In November, the group expected its results for 2023 to be around the same as the previous 12 months when it made £50.4million of revenue and an £11.3million profit.
But yesterday it revised its outlook by forecasting revenues of £49.8million and a profit of at least £8million.
Shares plunged 19.4 per cent, or 13.6 p, to 56.4 p.
Auction Technology Group saw its value shoot up by almost a fifth following a positive update.
The company, which operates online market places that allow bidders to access items such as paintings, sofas and antiques, said revenues rose 3 per cent to £35million in the three months to the end of December.
As a result, it said it remains on track for its revenues to increase between 5 per cent and 8 per cent across its financial year. Shares soared 19.8 per cent, or 90.5p, to 547p.
Clinical trial specialist Hvivo will start paying an annual dividend from this year as it cashes in on rising demand for its services.
The group, which recruits healthy adult volunteers and infects them with a medical-grade version of a virus to test the effectiveness of drugs and vaccines being developed by biotech and pharmaceutical companies, reported that revenues increased 15.5 per cent to £56million in 2023.
In a further dose of good news, Hvivo has already secured 90 per cent of its revenue for this year and expects to make £62million. Shares surged 8.4 per cent, or 2.2p, to 28.5p.
Heading in the other direction was Deliveroo after its German-based rival Delivery Hero, which held a 4.5 per cent stake in the group, sold its holding at a huge discount to the price it paid three years ago.
Shares slid 3.1 per cent, or 3.8p, to 118.1p.
There was some respite for Synthomer after it said it has reduced its debt bill by half since the start of 2023.
Shares in the chemicals group added 3.9 per cent, or 5.3p, to 140p.
Kromek, a Durham-based technology group, is cashing in on demand for its products that are being used to detect nuclear threats in Ukraine as well as cancer in hospitals around the world.
The company said it remains on track to report record revenues for this year, having increased its first-half sales while losses narrowed. Shares rose 0.9 per cent, or 0.05p, to 5.75p.
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