Helphire debt falls by 11.5%

Helphire has reduced its net debt by 11.5% from mid-2010 levels.

The credit hire company’s interim results for the six months ending 31 December 2010 showed net debt of £143.3m, down from £162m in June 2010.

The interim report also revealed a headcount reduction of 408 jobs, in line with its planned restructure.

The report said: “Further small reductions in headcount and overheads will continue in the second half of the current financial year.”

Helphire managing director Martin Ward said the company was “now a smaller, more efficient and more tightly managed business, well placed to deliver profitable business and generate positive net operating cash flow”.

Helphire announced an adjusted pre-tax profit of £3.6m for the half-year to 31 December 2010, which excludes exceptional items. This is down 37% from the £5.7m it made in the same period of 2009. Including the exceptional items, pre-tax profit was £1.6m for the six months to December, compared with a £400,000 loss in the same period of 2009.