Computacenter shares soar 19 per cent as UK arm recovers

UK business sees revenue jump five per cent, but Germany continues to outpace all regions

Computacenter's share price rose as much as 19 per cent today as the reseller giant announced a resurgence in its UK business.

The reseller and IT services giant announced its half-year results for the six months ending 30 June, with revenue up 15 per cent year-on-year to £1.7bn.

Sales in the UK were up five per cent year on year to £678.3m.

The UK arm of the business had been singled out as the weak link in the first quarter of the year, with year-on-year sales sliding one per cent, while Germany and France had soared 23 per cent and six per cent respectively.

"Services revenue in the UK showed good improvement during the first half of 2017," said CEO Mike Norris.

"Whilst the managed services pipeline has been rebuilding, the UK business has defended its contract base by completing a number of significant contract renewals.

"Services margins have improved in the UK, partly as a result of the increased mix of professional services, a business once again operating at sustainable levels of utilisation, and partly because of across-the-board execution in line with expectations within the managed services portfolio."

Following the announcement Computacenter shares rose as much as 19 per cent on the London Stock Exchange.

Elsewhere in the firm the Germany business pulled further away from the UK in terms of revenue, coming in 26 per cent up on the previous year at £762.6m.

The French arm of the business grew 14 per cent to £228.6m, while Belgium was up 24 per cent to £30.5m.