Wincanton delivers customer satisfaction

But strong volume growth there was somewhat offset by losses in the Pullman vehicle repair and maintenance business. Management reports that the volume of new business was so strong that the unit struggled to "digest it". They have now replaced its management team and hope for a better performance this financial year.

Wincanton also closed several sites as retail customers reshaped their distribution networks in response to online competition. This, together with the fact that the group passed on lower fuel prices to customers, kept sales growth at just 1 per cent. Yet incoming chief executive Adrian Colman is cheered by Wincanton's strong relationships with customers. A reputation for "not letting customers down", he says, explains why the likes of General Dynamics, Total and Britvic signed up for more, and why Howdens Joinery, Lavendon and Halo Foods joined for the first time.

Importantly, Wincanton also continued to reduce its debt pile. The average level of net debt fell by £32m to £136m as cost reductions and cash generation offset charges for onerous leases.

Pending upgrades, broker Investec expects adjusted pre-tax profit of £30.1m for the current financial year to March 2016, giving adjusted EPS of 17.9p.