Manchester car dealership Lookers plc said late on Tuesday that it has decided to postpone the announcement of its annual results — which were due on Wednesday — because it has discovered “potentially fraudulent transactions in one of its operating divisions.”

In a stock exchange statement, Lookers said: “In the final stages of preparing its results for the financial year ended 31 December 2019, the company has identified potentially fraudulent transactions in one of its operating divisions.

“As a result the board has decided to postpone the announcement of its results until the second half of April.

“Whilst the initial findings are not material in the context of the group, the board is appointing an external adviser to lead a full investigation into the matter.”