Turners Auctions Delivers Despite Tough Year

Turners Auctions Delivers 207% Increase in Profit Despite Tough Year
2009 Full Year Results Summary Released

Turners Auctions today announced a 2009 net profit after tax of $3.3 million for the financial year ending 31 December 2009 – an increase of 207% on the same period last year.

Chief Executive Officer Graham Roberts says that despite the continued decline in the NZ used vehicle market during the year, the company’s commitment to growing market share and managing costs has resulted in delivering an excellent result for its shareholders.

“We have driven profit growth in all core areas of the business. This is very pleasing given the economic situation of 2009 and the fact that the NZ used car market declined 5% during the financial year,” says Mr Roberts.

“Pleasingly, auction revenues have fared well at $36.6 million, delivering a small increase on 2008 revenue of $36.5 million. This is due to continued growth in sales of repossessed vehicles, government fleet vehicles and lease and rental company vehicles,” says Mr Roberts.

Operating profits from Turners Fleet have improved significantly compared to the previous financial year, as a result of prudent buying in Japan and tighter control of inventory. Turners Finance profits have also increased due to higher interest margins, a growing loan book and improved sales of add-on insurance products such as mechanical warranties.

“As indicated at the half year, changes in our strategy have delivered significant savings in business costs, with total expenses for the year down 14% to $65.8 million,” says Mr Roberts.

For Turners Fleet the cost of sales is down a quarter to $24.7 million. The company-wide shift to an online marketing strategy has reduced advertising costs by half to $1.4 million and has delivered an additional 9% of registered bidders, when compared to 2008.

This continued investment in online initiatives has also yielded a 31% increase in web traffic in 2009 and contributed to the growth of online purchasing.

The full year result and Turners’ positive cash position have led the Directors to declare a final dividend of 7.0 cents per share fully imputed at 33%, payable on March 30, 2010. This brings total dividend payments for 2009 to 12.0 cents per share.

-ends-

© Scoop Media