Cambria was established in 2006 with a strategy to build a balanced motor retail group, through close cooperation with its manufacturer partners and the self funded acquisition and turnaround of under-performing businesses. This strategy has proved very successful.

Following the acquisition of County Motor Works in January 2013, the Group now comprises 27 dealerships, representing 42 franchises and 17 brands, in a balanced portfolio spanning the high luxury, premium and volume segments.

The Group operates dealerships across England with a geographical spread from the North West through the Midlands, down to Kent in the South East and across as far as Exeter in the South West, trading under local brand names, including, Dees, Doves, Grange, Invicta, Motorparks and Pure Triumph.

Cambria's brand portfolio currently comprises Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Chrysler Jeep, Citroen, Dacia, Ford, Fiat, Honda, Jaguar, Mazda, Nissan, Renault, Seat, Vauxhall, Volvo and Triumph.

Our success in turning around under-performing dealerships has enabled Cambria to build a strong balance sheet. As a result, the Group is now in a position to consider acquisitions which are earnings enhancing from the outset, strengthening Cambria's brand portfolio mix further and fulfilling our national ambitions to create five regional clusters, each with a turnover of £200 million.


http://www.cambriaautomobilesplc.com/our_brands

http://www.cambriaautomobilesplc.com/index.jsp

Pre-Close Trading Update

RNS


RNS Number : 8867I

Cambria Automobiles Plc

05 September 2016




5 September 2016



Cambria Automobiles plc

("Cambria" or the "Group")

AIM: CAMB



Pre-Close Trading Update, Board Appointment and Notice of Results



Cambria, the franchised motor retailer, announces the following trading update ahead of its preliminary results for the year to 31 August 2016.



Trading update



The Board is pleased to report that trading in the second half of the financial year continued strongly following a good first half. Trading in the first 11 months of the financial year was substantially ahead of the corresponding period in 2014/15 on both a total and like-for-like basis. The Board is confident of delivering results for the full year in line with the revised market expectations.



New vehicle unit sales were up 11.0% (like-for-like up 3.8%), with gross profit per retail unit increasing year on year in the total Group and in the like-for-like businesses.



Used vehicle sales also performed well, with unit sales 4.4% (like-for-like 2.6%) ahead of the same period in the prior year. Gross profit per unit continued to increase year on year and this improved performance has driven profit growth from the used car segment of the business. The Group's aftersales operations also continued to perform well, with profitability up by 3.7% year-on-year (like-for-like flat).



The Swindon Land Rover business that was acquired on 30 April 2015 has continued to perform in line with expectations and the Group's Welwyn Garden City Land Rover dealership, which was acquired on 8 January 2016, is integrating to plan. The Woodford Jaguar and Land Rover business acquired on 5 July 2016 is being integrated into the Group and the Board is confident that this will prove to be a successful acquisition with a positive contribution expected in the 2016/17 financial year. The Group's newly opened and third Aston Martin dealership located in Solihull is now fully operational and a forward order bank is building.



Heading into the important September trading period, the new car order book for the Group is building well and in line with our expectations. The Board expects the Group to deliver another strong trading performance in this crucial month.



Board Appointment



The Board is pleased to announce that with effect from 5 September 2016, Tim Duckers has joined the Board of Directors in an executive capacity as Managing Director of the motor division. Tim has over 20 years of Motor Retail operating experience, has been with the group since 2008 and has been integral to the group's growth over that period.



Notice of results



Cambria will announce its Preliminary results for the year ended 31 August 2016 on Tuesday 22 November 2016.



Mark Lavery, Chief Executive Officer of Cambria, said:



"The Group has performed well during the course of the financial year, delivering growth in the operating business and adding on earnings accretive acquisitions. The mix of franchises has been enriched in line with our growth strategy and the business is well placed to build on the momentum generated this year. The September order bank is building well and this puts us in a strong position heading into the important plate change month.



I am very pleased that Tim has accepted our offer for him to join the Board of Directors and look forward to him supporting myself and the team as we continue to grow the Group further along the next exciting phase of its development."



Enquiries:




Cambria Automobiles

Mark Lavery, Chief Executive

James Mullins, Finance Director

www.cambriaautomobilesplc.com



Tel: 01707 280 851


N+1 Singer - Nomad & Joint Broker

Alex Price / Jen Boorer



Tel: 020 7496 3000


Zeus Capital - Joint Broker

Adam Pollock



Tel: 020 7533 7727


FTI Consulting

Jonathon Brill / Alex Beagley / James Styles



Tel: 020 3727 1000


About Cambria - www.cambriaautomobilesplc.com



Cambria Automobiles ("Cambria") was established in March 2006 with the aim of creating a balanced independent UK motor retail group through a self-funded "buy and build" strategy, focused on turnaround opportunities.



Working in close cooperation with its manufacturer partners, the Group has built a balanced portfolio of 31 luxury, premium and volume dealerships, representing 46 franchises and 17 brands, with geographical representation spanning from the North West to the South East in Kent. These businesses are autonomous and trade under local brand names, including Dees, Doves, Grange, Invicta, Motorparks and Pure Triumph.



Cambria's brand portfolio currently comprises Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Dacia, Ford, Fiat, Honda, Jaguar, Jeep, Land Rover, Mazda, Nissan, Renault, Seat, Triumph, Vauxhall and Volvo.



The management's success in turning around under-performing dealerships has allowed Cambria to build a strong balance sheet. As a result, the Group is in a position to acquire valuable premium operations, like the recently acquired Jaguar Land Rover business in North London, Land Rover dealership in Welwyn Garden City, Jaguar Land Rover business in Barnet and Land Rover business in Swindon, which are immediately earnings enhancing and directly in line with the Group's strategy to further enhance the brand portfolio.



The Group's medium term ambition is to create a £1 billion turnover business producing attractive returns on shareholder funds.

ST of IC today - So, ahead of Cambria’s full-year results on Tuesday, 22 November, and with 32 per cent upside to my target price of 95p, I rate the shares a buy at 72p.

AUDITED PRELIMINARY RESULTS 2015/16 AND NOTICE OF AGM

Strong results in Group's 10th year of trading, continued strategic progress


Operational Highlights

· New vehicle sales up 9.9% with a 13.2% increase in profit per unit
· Used vehicle sales up 5.2% with an 8.1% improvement in profit per unit and continued evolution of the Group's focus on "Velocity" to drive return on investment
· Aftersales Revenue increased 8.1% with an increase of 3.7% in service and bodyshop hours sold
· In line with the strategy of the Group and of Jaguar Land Rover:
§ Acquisition of Welwyn Garden City Land Rover for £10.8m, integration progressing well
§ Disposal of Exeter Jaguar and Croydon Jaguar
§ Acquisition of Woodford Jaguar and Land Rover dealership for £2.1m, integration progressing well

· Opening of third Aston Martin business in Birmingham and closure of Exeter Aston Martin in line with the Aston Martin global second century network restructure
· Continuing investment in the Freehold portfolio; to meet the franchising standards of the brand partners and maximise operational potential and increase used car and aftersales capacity
· Barnet Jaguar Land Rover development progressing well, other Brand led corporate identity developments initiated