Shares in Renold (RNO) climbed 6 per cent after the chains and gearbox maker issued an encouraging trading update outlining positive developments to its self-help strategy. The manufacturer of products used in tube escalators and Big Ben's clock tower revealed that margins continue to widen as it reaps the benefits from the closure of its lossmaking Bredbury facility and various other cost-cutting activities.
Those measures mean adjusted operating profit is expected to be at the upper end of market expectations, while sales growth is also reported to be improving, despite exposure to troubled energy and mining markets. That momentum, coupled with falling capital expenditure, drove cash flow up considerably and saw net debt reduce by about £5m to £20m.
Broker Numis expects adjusted EPS of 3.6p this year followed by 4.4p in 2016.
