13th Mar 2025 09:48
(Alliance News) - Trainline PLC shares were down sharply on Thursday, despite the rail ticketing platform reporting a rise in sales and a new share buyback programme, amid lingering concern about a new state-sponsored competitor.
Trainline shares were down 13% to 272.60 pence early Thursday in London. The wider FTSE 250 index was down just 0.2%.
The London-based company said net ticket sales for the financial year that ended February 28 were GBP5.91 billion, up 12% from GBP5.30 billion in financial 2024.
The revenue to Trainline from these sales increased by 11% to GBP442 million from GBP397 million. Within this, its UK Consumer, International Consumer and Trainline Solutions divisions all posted 12% revenue increases at constant currency.
The statement comes ahead of the company's full financial 2025 results release on May 7.
Trainline said adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation as a percentage of net ticket sales is expected to be marginally ahead of its prior guidance of 2.6% in financial 2025. It kept guidance for financial 2026 at 2.6% to 2.7%.
"With record net ticket sales for the third year in a row, we saw growth in consumer sales in the UK of 13% and in Spain of 41%, while international B2B sales through our Global API increased by about 60%," said Chief Executive Officer Jody Ford. "There is still so much to be achieved in the UK and Europe with the critical foundation being open, fair and competitive markets. Rail is set to surge across Europe and Trainline will be at the centre of it."
Trainline noted the rail industry consultation launched by the UK government last month as part of its plan to establish Great British Rail as an arms-length governing body. GBR would replace the current train operator retail websites in the UK with a single public sector retail website and ticketing app, which would compete with Trainline's own offerings.
Trainline argued on Thursday that it "already thrives in a competitive environment" and it noted: "GBR's retailing will likely take several years to crystallise, with the precursory establishment of GBR as a governing body only expected to happen by 2027 at the earliest."
Trainline said it will launch a further buyback programme for up to GBP75 million once its current buyback has completed. The company has bought back GBP69 million in shares so far in the GBP75 million programme begun in June last year. That programme in turn followed a GBP50 million buyback.
Trainline said the new buyback will conducted in two tranches of GBP37.5 million each, with the first run by Morgan Stanley and the second by Deutsche Numis.
By Tom Waite, Alliance News editor
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