28.04.2017

Solid start for Cramo

Finnish international rental company Cramo has reported strong first quarter revenues and substantially higher profits.

Total revenues were €162.9 million 4.8 percent up on the same period last year, while pre-tax profits jumped 83 percent to €15.9 million. All regions posted higher revenues, and profits although Central Europe reduced its losses, while the Modular Space division saw revenues dip eight percent, with a drop in profits of more than 20 percent. Capital expenditure was almost 16 percent higher at €35.4 million.

Chief executive Leif Gustafsson said: “The start of the year has been promising. Demand for equipment rental and for modular space developed favourably, and we succeeded in increasing sales in all our equipment rental business segments. Sales performance was also supported by the timing of Easter compared to last year. In modular space the rental sales also clearly increased from last year.”

“Profitability improvement continued to be strong in the equipment rental business division. However, in modular space profitability development was unsatisfactory in the first quarter, which was mainly due to cost overruns in some projects in Finland. Actions have been taken to secure better cost control in the future.”

“In February we launched our new strategy ‘Shape and Share’ and set the new long-term financial targets until 2020. The implementation of the new strategy has started in all countries. Looking ahead, for this year, I expect the demand for equipment rental and modular space to stay at a good level in all our segments, supported by the good outlook in construction industry and megatrends such as urbanisation and migration.”

Vertikal Comment

Another excellent set of numbers from Cramo, the company is really beginning to gather some momentum and looks set to have a very good year. One of the benefits this year has been the mild winter, but at the same the markets it works in is benefiting from a true recovery, while its German business – Central Europe looks as though it will soon move into the black.