HSS Hire revenue drops as Covid-19 hits business

Operating profit for the year to the end of December rose to £16.8m from £11.2m as revenue increased 1.6% to £328m.

The company said it traded in line with expectations for the first 12 weeks of 2020 and that business started to slow in the last week of March as the government enforced its lockdown.

In the first nine weeks of the second quarter revenue is 40% normal levels but the trend is improving, HSS said. The construction industry has started to reopen after two months of near-shutdown caused by Covid-19.

The company said the overall impact of the Covid-19 crisis was highly uncertain and that it was not prudent to give guidance. HSS said it would not pay a final dividend for 2019 and that it would not reconsider the payout until its balance sheet was stronger.

Steve Ashmore, HSS's chief executive, said: "The outlook for the remainder of the year is uncertain but we have taken, and continue to take, action to reduce the impact of an extended period of lower revenues, albeit we have been encouraged by recent increases in activity."

The group's annual results, delayed by Covid-19 disruption, are its first update since 25 March when it withdrew guidance.

This story was corrected to remove a reference to HSS's dividend being cancelled. The company did not pay a dividend but this was part of an established plan.