Pendragon records £63.2m profit 22 | 02 | 2011

PENDRAGON, WHICH operates widely across Scotland under the Stratstone and Evans Halshaw banners, enjoyed double-digit percentile growth in sales last year as the group recorded an operating profit of £63.2 million, up from £56.7m in 2009.

Last year's growth further consolidated Pendragon's position as the UK’s largest motor retailer. The company saw revenue rise to £3.575 billion (2009: £3.191bn) while the underlying operating margin increased to 2.1% (2009: 1.7%)

And despite net borrowings increasing slightly to £325.5m (2009: £315.4m), chief executive Trevor Finn said the business has made “considerable strides” in the last year.

“We have benefited from our scale as the largest car retailer in the UK combined with our success in driving performance through our operational initiatives," he explained.

“The results of our used car operations have been particularly pleasing with outperformance against the market. We continue to make progress in our aftersales segment despite a reduced vehicle parc in some of our key franchises.

"New car operations performed strongly due to the franchise mix we hold and our continued improvements in this sector. While the group performed well in 2010, what's more pleasing is to see that momentum carried forward into January, and we look forward to it continuing during 2011."

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Jim McGill