Homeserve lifted by results and purchase

The price of shares in FTSE 250 domestic repairs firm Homeserve (LON:HSV) has increased by 8.18% to 1,296p (as 12:15 GMT) after it published half-year results and announced a new acquisition. Revenues for the six months ended 30th September were up by 13% with a substantial improvement in operating profits. The company also announced the purchase of North American outfit eLocal Holdings for a $140 million consideration, which management said would help the company expand its presence in the region.

Group CEO Richard Harpin commented: “I am very pleased with our financial performance and strategic progress in the first half of this year. All of our Membership businesses performed well, with North America continuing to deliver strong growth, and interesting opportunities in all our European businesses to develop new partnerships, harness new technology and continue to improve customer service and efficiency. Our buy-and-build approach to HVAC added five profitable new acquisitions and will become a significant business line for us for the first time this year. In Home Experts, we have another business line with global appeal. Checkatrade and Habitissimo are both market leaders and in eLocal, we have agreed to acquire a majority stake in a high growth business which gives us a profitable entry into Home Experts in North America“.