Annual operating profits have shot up by 103% at Bristol-based factoring and invoice discounting firm Ultimate Finance as it continued its expansion.
The £904,000 was earned on turnover up 51% to £9.7m as Ashley Commercial Finance, which Ultimate acquired last October for £4.75m, was fully integrated and cross-selling and joint marketing opportunities exploited.
Pre-tax for the year to June 30 rose 61% to £718,000. Ultimate has continued to investment in the business to support further growth, including expansion of its asset finance division, a wider national presence to include Birmingham and Cardiff and a strengthened sales team.
Chairman Clive Garston said: “This is a very strong performance, particularly given the economic and trading environment which existed in the period. The acquisition of Ashley Commercial Finance has strengthened our range of products and services and provided excellent cross-selling opportunities.
“There is evidence that some of our competitors are adopting short term tactics to buy market share at the expense of unacceptable risk. We will not follow that path and will continue to maintain high standards of underwriting and risk management.
“The Board remains optimistic about the prospects for the group and looks forward to the future with confidence.”
Taking out costs related to the Ashley acquisition, amortisation and group organisation, the operating profit would have been £1,284,000, up 146% on the year.
