Vertu Motors (VTU) H1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved record H1 revenue of £2,510.0m, up 1.4% year-over-year, with market share gains across all vehicle sales channels despite challenging UK consumer conditions and sector headwinds.

• High-margin aftersales business contributed over 45% of total gross profit, with robust cost control and continued investment in technology and digitalization, including AI-driven initiatives.

• Significant outperformance in BEV sales, with like-for-like BEV new vehicle sales up 82.4% versus market growth of 55.2%.

• Management structure enhanced with two new Managing Directors appointed internally, effective January 2026, to increase senior bandwidth and focus on strategy and execution.

• Brand consolidation to a single Vertu brand increased prompted awareness from 11% to 19% in September, with further growth expected.

Financial highlights

• Revenue increased 1.4% year-over-year to £2,510.0m for H1 FY26, driven by acquisitions, while core revenues declined due to lower new vehicle and Motability sales.

• Gross margin improved to 11.2% (H1 FY26) from higher margin aftersales; adjusted profit before tax was £20.0m, down from £22.1m in H1 FY25.

• Free cash inflow of £0.4m, with net debt at £78.3m, down year-over-year despite £22.4m spent on acquisitions and £5.6m on share buybacks.

• Interim dividend maintained at 0.9p per share; over 19% of issued share capital repurchased since FY17, with £12m buyback program ongoing.

• Tangible net assets per share increased to 76.1p.

Outlook and guidance

• Excluding the JLR cyber-attack, full-year underlying profit before tax expected to be in line with market expectations (£27.2m consensus), but outlook remains cautious due to weak consumer and business confidence.

• Anticipates Motability market recovery from March next year and easier BEV targets in Q4 due to ZEV mandate flexibilities and grants.

• Recent government BEV grants expected to boost H2 demand.

• Focus remains on maximizing existing portfolio and measured growth, with further outlet expansion and small-scale acquisitions planned.