Regus profit up; sees further sales growth

Published 30th Aug 2011

Office space supplier Regus Plc (RGU.L) expects further improvements in its sales after it posted a 34 percent rise in first-half adjusted pretax profit on a pick up in demand from big businesses for temporary space amid economic uncertainties.

Luxembourg-headquartered Regus, which offers ready-to-use offices for rentals as short as half a day, said on Tuesday it was on track to meet its full-year expectations.

"While we acknowledge the challenging environment, we continue to expect further improvements in revenues and cash from operations, as we continue to invest in growth," Chief Executive Mark Dixon said in a statement.

The company, whose customers include GlaxoSmithKline (GSK.L), Google (GOOG.O), and Starbucks (SBUX.O), also raised its interim dividend 6 percent to 0.9 pence.

January-June pretax profit before exceptional items was 13 million pounds, compared with 9.7 million pounds last year. Revenue grew 10 percent to 565.6 million pounds.

In March, the company reported a 67 percent drop in earnings but said expansion and cost-cutting will return it to growth in 2011.

Regus shares, which have shed 43 percent of their value over the past three months. closed at 64 pence on Friday on the London Stock Exchange, valuing the firm at 600 million pounds.

Source: ' Reuters '

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