Spanish buses boost National Express shares
NATIONAL Express yesterday met with investors in Spain to reassure them that its Spanish business is performing well.
The firm said Alsa, its intercity and urban bus service, “has continued to be resilient” in the second quarter in spite of Spain’s economic turmoil.
“Alsa’s intercity coach revenue has continued to grow and urban bus revenue has been strong. As expected, revenue from the smaller non-transport activities has declined,” it said in a statement.
The firm is waiting to collect less money from Spain’s state bodies than it was at the end of 2011, it added.
Shares in National Express rose 2.6 per cent to 199p yesterday, outperforming the FTSE 250 index. The firm is due to issue a trading statement on 28 June.
Shore Capital analyst Greg Johnson said in a note that yesterday’s update underpins the firm’s strong performance in recent months.