Anexo confident following strong first half results and backing from finance providers

Half year revenues and profits have improved at Anexo Group which said it views its post-COVID future positively.

The Liverpool-based specialist integrated credit hire and legal services provider, with offices in Bolton and Leeds, announced revenues for the six months to June 30, today, at £48.3m, a 31.9% increase on last year’s £36.6m level. Pre-tax profits of £8.9m represented a 40.5% improvement on the previous year’s £6.3m achievement. A maintained 0.5p dividend per share has been declared.

Executive chairman, Alan Sellers, also revealed that the group’s finance providers have offered increased facilities, which are currently being finalised and will allow the group to take advantage of the opportunities presented in both the credit hire and legal services division.

The company, which last month ended talks with shareholder DBAY Advisors over a potential takeover, said the net debt balance for the period stood at £44.4m, compared with £27.1m a year ago and £40.5m at December 31, 2020.

Anexo focuses on providing replacement vehicles and associated legal services to customers involved in a non-fault accident.

The board expects that during the second half of 2021 underlying profit before tax will continue to improve as cash collections grow, the number of legal cases settled in court will increase following the reopening of courts in May 2021 for face-to face-hearings, and vehicle numbers to continue to reach record levels.

During the reporting period, Anexo said it continued its strong performance throughout the third lockdown and the subsequent four-stage easing ending in June 2021. Vehicle numbers increased strongly as overall traffic volumes continued to recover to normal levels.

The number of group vehicles on the road currently stands at 2,023 as at September 7, 2021. Case settlements continued to rise, despite court hearings in the first half being largely held remotely via telephone or video conference.

Recruitment of high quality legal staff has continued within the group’s legal services division.

Alan Sellers said: “I am pleased to report that the group has performed robustly during the first half of the year, notwithstanding the considerable challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Business activity in both our credit hire and legal services divisions have recovered strongly. We continue to put record numbers of vehicles on the road and to maximise cash collections by carefully managing hire periods and increasing the overall number of case settlements.

“The rise in vehicle demand and our continued focus on cash collections provide an excellent opportunity to further implement the group’s fundamental growth strategy.”

He added: “Our existing finance providers have offered increased facilities, the details of which are currently being finalised. These will allow us to increase the deployment of our fleet and accelerate the number of new cases we take on, while enabling ongoing investment in high quality litigators, thereby ensuring we maintain the relationship between new business and settlement capacity which has been the focus of the group since listing.

“Following the amicable cessation of exploratory takeover talks, DBAY Advisers retains a seat on the board as a major supportive shareholder.

“We believe that our growth strategy offers the best possible opportunity to create significant value for all our shareholders. We remain committed to our stated dividend policy and we look to the future with confidence.”