S&U identifies acquisition targets in the hunt for continued growth
FINANCE provider S&U has identified a limited number of acquisition opportunities which meet its growth criteria, the group said today.
The Solihull-based group has an £80m war chest at its disposal following its decision in July to sell its home credit division, Loansathone4U, to Non-Standard Finance.
In a trading update covering the period from August 1 to December 9, 2015, the company said: “The sale of Loansathome4u was completed on August 4, 2015. The net proceeds of £80m have been re-invested in the motor finance business, have funded a special dividend of £1.25p per ordinary share paid on November 12, 2015 and still allow substantial headroom within our funding facilities for both accelerated growth and acquisitions.
“Significant work is being carried out with our advisers on a limited number of opportunities meeting our acquisition criteria. These criteria include delivering earnings enhancement and significant future growth.”
The group’s motor finance arm, Advantage Finance, is continuing to trade at record levels, buoyed by the strong new car market.
It said that on all measures, including new applications, customer numbers, monthly collection levels, debt quality and profitability, Advantage continued to break new ground.
It has also refined and improved its product offerings, its underwriting capabilities and the speed and certainty of service it offers its introducers. The result has been live customer numbers which have now reached over 30,000 – an increase of over 28% on a year ago.
Commenting on current group trading, Anthony Coombs, S&U chairman, said: “Our excellent motor finance business is producing record results and operating in a general economic environment with the stability necessary to sustain strong consumer demand, thus providing balanced and sustained growth. We therefore continue to regard the future for S&U with great confidence.”
