Losses halved at listed plant hire firm

Industrial equipment hire company Northbridge is showing “signs of recovery”, according to its chief executive.

The Burton firm’s latest results for 2018 show that it more than halved its pre-tax losses last year, down from £4.4m to £2m.

The firm’s turnover rose by nearly 5% to £26.9m over the period.

Eric Hook, chief executive, said: “We are pleased to report results which are well ahead of the prior year and are driven by more positive conditions in our end markets. This year marked a turning point for Northbridge, with both divisions of our business starting to show signs of early recovery as the oil and gas market stabilises and the energy market, including in the renewables space, drive revenue growth.

“As a result of our operational gearing, we believe that Northbridge is well placed to generate considerable gross profit margin growth as revenue continues to increase and we look forward with confidence to the future and expect further good progress to be achieved in 2019.”