Plaxton buys kw PSV plant
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• Plaxton, the Scarborough coach-builder, is set to announce a deal with Fiat, through which it will acquire the French coach-building operation of the Italian group's Iveco subsidiary. Iveco will supply chassis for the coaches but Plaxton will control design and production.
The deal follows last month's agreement with Volvo to cooperate in research and development.
Plaxton has raised coach output from 573 to 650 units a year after managing director David Matthews introduced flexible working hours and a revitalised management strategy. The company can now undercut its Continental rivals on price.
John Houlihan of Plaxton's stockbroker Hoare Govett, has followed Matthews' successes since he took over the helm. Houlihan expects profits of more than 23.5 million for the nine-month period to December, a giant leap from the 2920,000 reported by the former management team in the year to September 1986.
Houlihan is forecasting profits of at least 26 million for 1989 and expects Plaxton's move into Europe to boost profits even further in 1990. "Matthews clearly has his eye on building up a network of companies to tackle the huge European market," he says. 0 Plaxton has released results showing a profit of 23,732,000 for the nine months to 30 June. This gives earnings per share of 11.7 pence, and the board has declared a second interim dividend.