Skip Header
Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

Speedy Hire warns on worsening market conditions despite strategic progress

(Sharecast News) - Tools and equipment hire company Speedy Hire said on Thursday that it had delivered "significant strategic progress" in FY26, highlighted by its "transformational" partnership with Proservice and continued momentum across its core operations, but also cautioned that trading conditions had deteriorated further in the final quarter amid budget uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and customer‑driven delays. Speedy Hire stated the integration with Proservice was "continuing to progress as planned" and that the agreement remained on track to generate £50m-55m of revenue and be "significantly earnings accretive" in its first full year of trading.

However, Speedy stated that although it had anticipated a continuation of "subdued market conditions" for the remainder of FY26, market conditions had actually worsened through the fourth quarter - with both uncertainty around the UK Budget in November and recent geopolitical events in the Middle East. Speedy noted that it had also seen "certain customer led delays".

As a result, the London-listed group now expects FY26 underlying earnings to be roughly £90m - down from £97.1m in FY25.

Net debt at 31 March was expected to be roughly £159m, including the £35m invested in ProService, with the group expecting to see "meaningful deleverage" in FY27 as a result of strong operating cash flow.

"Notwithstanding our caution around ongoing economic and geopolitical events, the Board remains confident of its outlook for FY27 and beyond," said Speedy.

As of 0855 BST, Speedy shares had slumped 11.55% 19.46p..

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Share this article

Related Sharecast Articles

Air France-KLM submits bid for stake in Portugal's TAP
(Sharecast News) - Air France-KLM said it had submitted a non-binding offer to buy a minority stake in TAP Air Portugal as part of the Portuguese government's plan to privatise its national airline.
Sorted Group proposes to dispose of its main trading subsidiary
(Sharecast News) - Sorted Group announced a proposal to dispose of its main trading subsidiary Sorted Group Limited on Thursday, for a nominal £1, in a move that would see the company become an AIM cash shell and pursue a new acquisition-led strategy.
RBC Capital Markets upgrades Berkeley to 'outperform'
(Sharecast News) - Analysts at RBC Capital Markets upgraded housebuilder Berkeley from 'sector perform' to 'outperform' on Thursday, noting the group had "acted decisively" to the challenges it had faced.

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

Award-winning online share dealing

Search, compare and select from thousands of shares.

Expert insights into investing your money

Our team of experts explore the world of share dealing.