Claire Hack
AIM-quoted finance house Private
& Commercial Finance Group (PCFG) is among the few companies to
have weathered the economic storm, emerging at the end of the year
to 31 March with pre-tax profits at double their 2009 level.
Go deeper with GlobalData
The group released its results for
the year ending 31 March 2010 at the end of June, posting a pre-tax
profit of £528,361 as well as strengthening its balance sheet with
£1.4m of new share capital and the repayment of £2.3m of loan
stock.
Its profit increased despite a
reduction in its portfolio of receivables, dropping 9.4% to
£121.9m.
Turnover, gross profit and
operating profit dropped between 4 and 24%, but profit before tax
rose about 101%, from about £263,000 in 2009.
Profit after tax rose almost 138%,
from about £159,000 in 2009 to £378,000 in 2010.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataIts business finance division
advanced £27m of new business during the year. The group’s leasing
activities fall within the business finance division, and 80% of
these are in wheeled assets, including cars and light commercial
vehicles.
Robert Murray, managing director of
the group’s motor finance and business finance divisions, said:
“Profit was effectively double what it was a year ago and that was
significantly ahead of market expectations.
“This was because of a combination
of a number of factors – in addition to benefitting from
revaluations of our interest rate swap portfolio, there has been a
reduction in bad debt over the last 24 months and we have seen
improvement in the quality of business we’ve written.
“There were also better margins
because of the space vacated by other players coming out of the
market.”
However, Murray added that there
had been an overall reduction in portfolio size, caused by the
reduced availability of senior debt in the market.
“The majority of the banks we deal
with have been supportive and offered us extended facilities until
October 2011 which is about as long as we would expect to get with
the current climate.
“However, it restricts our ability
to push the business forward.”
He is nevertheless confident of
future growth, however, saying there is sufficient demand to
warrant seeking new funding lines.
With access to additional funding,
the group will also be looking at portfolio acquisitions in the
near future, Murray said.
PCFG has also launched a new IT platform, implemented in
September last year, encompassing administration, accounting and
collections.
