AM100 heavyweight Vertu Motors expects its full-year results to exceed current market forecasts after recording growth across new and used vehicle sales, fleet and aftersales during the first five months of FY27.
The AM100 dealer group, which operates 194 sales and aftersales dealerships, said like-for-like revenue increased by 4.6% in the period to July 31, while service revenue grew by 3.4%.
Vehicle and aftersales growth
Used retail vehicle volumes increased by 4.4%, supported by the Value Cars by Vertu initiative launched in April to grow sales of older used vehicles.
Vertu introduced the used car sales programme aimed at a segment that is often underplayed by franchised retailers: vehicles aged seven to 14 years in a deliberate attempt to capture more value from cars the group already takes in as part-exchanges but did not always retail.
New retail volumes rose by 8.7%, Motability sales increased by 10.2% and new fleet car and commercial vehicle volumes climbed by 19.9%.
Vertu said it had significantly increased its fleet market share, while higher aftersales revenue contributed to year-on-year profit growth. Group gross margins remained stable and operating costs continued to be controlled following action taken before the start of the financial year.
Retail new vehicle orders for the July to September quarter are running ahead of last year, giving the board greater confidence ahead of the September registration plate change and quarter-end new car bonus period.
Robert Forrester, chief executive of Vertu Motors, said: “The group has delivered a strong trading performance in the five month period to 31 July 2026, with positive contributions from new and used vehicles, increased fleet market share, and continued momentum in our high-margin aftersales operations. Order-take levels for the important September plate change month give the board confidence that results for the full year will be ahead of market expectations.
“We also welcome the Government’s consultation on the ZEV Mandate, an area on which we have actively engaged with Government for some time. We hope this will result in a more pragmatic transition to electrification which better reflects consumer demand and prevailing market conditions. There is now an opportunity for a reset to allow the automotive sector in the UK to make a bigger contribution to economic growth of the UK.”
Chinese franchises expand
Vertu said it continues to reshape its dealership portfolio, with further expansion involving Chinese manufacturers expected over the coming months.
Its first Omoda and Jaecoo dealerships opened in Burton on July 1, followed by Leapmotor dealerships alongside its Vauxhall operations in Harrogate and Crewe during August.
The group is also working to introduce another Geely dealership at an existing operation on Teesside. It now has 18 dealerships representing Chinese brands, including BYD and MG.
Elsewhere, Vertu has added Alpine to its Nottingham Renault and Dacia dealership and introduced Renault and Dacia at an existing Mansfield operation.
The expansion has been accompanied by further consolidation. Vertu closed its loss-making Mazda dealership in York at the end of July and relocated its Sheffield Mazda operation alongside Nissan to reduce costs.
These portfolio changes are expected to increase full-year capital expenditure by £2m compared with the group’s previous guidance.
Vertu expects net debt, excluding IFRS 16 lease liabilities, to stand at between £74m and £77m at the end of August, compared with £78.3m a year earlier.
The group has also spent £1.7m repurchasing 2.4m shares during the financial year to date. A further £10.3m remains available under the £12m buyback programme announced in March.
Vertu will publish its interim results on October 14.
Ensure you always receive AM insights. Make us a preferred source of news on Google