Ashtead sees FY at top end of expectations

Ashtead Group said it had continued to perform well in the fourth quarter of the current financial year and expected full year results to be towards the top of the range of current analyst expectations.

In a statement ahead of a seminar with analysts and investors, the equipment rental outfit said its specialty businesses provide an opportunity for long term structural growth and more consistent returns on a typically less cyclical basis, with a lower capital requirement.

The company said for some time its growth objective has been to achieve 15% market share in the US, almost double the current position.

It added that market share at its US operation Sunbelt had increased through a combination of same-store growth, greenfield store openings and bolt-on acquisitions, with the plan to continue over the medium term.

“Today almost one third of our stores have been open for under three years and this has unsurprisingly impacted some of the metrics of the business,” the company said.

"As the Group has grown it has become larger and more diversified, and this will deliver higher returns and greater stability across the cycle. It does however lead to varying metrics relative to historical performance,” said chief executive Geoff Drabble.

“It is important that these trends are better understood and to assist we have now added further granularity to our presentations."