Shares of Speedy Hire plc, the Newton-le-Willows-based tools and equipment hire firm, fell as much as 13% after it published a trading update for the year to March 31, 2026, saying “market conditions have worsened through Q4 with uncertainty around the UK Budget in November and the recent geopolitical events in the Middle East.”

Speedy Hire said: “The group made significant strategic progress in FY2026 including a transformational commercial agreement with the Proservice Building Services Marketplace Plc group, with the integration continuing to progress as planned and the agreement remaining on track to generate £50-55m of revenue and be significantly earnings accretive in its first full year of trading.

“The group also concluded the ‘Enable’ phase of its Velocity strategy re-positioning the business for future growth.

“At our interim results on 26 November 2025 we anticipated a continuation of subdued market conditions for the remainder of FY2026.

“Market conditions have worsened through Q4 with uncertainty around the UK Budget in November and the recent geopolitical events in the Middle East.

“The group has also seen certain customer led delays, affecting hire and service revenues, which are now expected to impact positively in the near term. As a result the board now expects FY2026 EBITDA to be c.£90m.

“Net debt at 31 March 2026 is expected to be c.£159m, including the £35m invested in ProService. The group expects to see meaningful deleverage in FY2027 as a result of strong operating cash flow.

“Notwithstanding our caution around ongoing economic and geopolitical events, the board remains confident of its outlook for FY2027 and beyond.”