BCA reports healthy trading after third record year

BCA Marketplace said it was trading well as the car auction house and owner of WeBuyAnyCar.com reported a strong rise in annual profit.

Operating profit for the year to 1 April rose 17.9% to £87.6m as revenue rose 19.8% to £2.4bn. BCA, which is the subject of takeover interest from private equity group Apax Partners, said the results were its third year of record performance.

BCA’s biggest business is car auctions and sales. It also checks and stores vehicles, manages customs and provides other services along the motor industry’s supply chain. Revenue increased across all its divisions last year with big increases from selling vehicles.

The UK vehicle remarketing division, BCA’s main auction business, sold more than 1m vehicles for the first time and increased operating profit to £67.1m. Vehicle buying, which includes WeBuyAnyCar, sold 219,000 cars – up 12.9% – and increased operating profit by 30.3%.

Avril Palmer-Baunack, BCA’s executive chairman, said: "The group has delivered record commercial and financial results for the third successive year. The new financial year has started well, with performance since the year end in line with our expectations. Across all of our markets there remains significant addressable volume to capture.”

BCA’s success has attracted the interest of private equity firms awash with funding. Apax approached the company in May about an all-cash offer but BCA rejected the proposal.

Apax is considering making a formal offer and has until 8 July to do so. Rival buyout firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, which owned BCA until its flotation in April 2015, is also reported to be considering a bid.