CVS (CVS) has revealed a much stronger start to second-half trading than previously expected. Employment costs may have risen 10 per cent during the opening six months of the year, prompting a 5 per cent fall in adjusted pre-tax profits to £17.4m. But since the period end, the group has seen an improvement in veterinary and nurse locum rates which, combined with good top-line acceleration, allowed analysts at Peel Hunt to upgrade full-year pre-tax profit expectations to £38.6m from £37.6m – equating to EPS of 46.5p – compared to £37.3m and 47.8p in FY2018.
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