Stagecoach rattling along

THE recovery in Stagecoach, the mercurial Scottish-based train and buses group, continued apace today.

It said underlying pre-tax profits soared 13% to £136m in the year to 30 April, appearing to justify the 900% bounce in the share price over the past two-and-a-half years.

At the nadir of its fortunes, when it announced a messy pullout from its disastrous US expansion, the shares plunged to just 12½p. They recently touched a five-year high of 123p.

The company today revealed that profits from its South West Trains division, up 10% at £48m, had driven the impressive performance.

Stagecoach shares were up 4p at 118½p in early trade.

Chief executive Brian Souter said: 'Our rail division has performed well, benefiting from the introduction of new trains and a significantly improved operational performance. These strong results have been achieved despite significant cost pressures in the transport sector, particularly of fuel prices.'

However, Stagecoach will have to make do without its experienced and wellregarded rail boss Graham Eccles, so instrumental in shepherding South West Trains and the Virgin Trains joint venture during their darkest moments since privatisation.

Eccles is retiring and will be replaced by Ian Dobbs, 50, a former senior manager of British Rail under Sir Robert Reid, and who over the past six years has been working in Australia and New Zealand.