Optare (AIM:OPE) wrong kind of snow shakes bus maker’s December
With the share price languishing at all time lows, the UK designer, manufacturer and vendor of specialist buses and coaches came out with a somewhat mixed trading update which did give hope of better times in 2011. However, high levels of debt remains an issue!
Optare, which was formed in 1985 out of the old Leyland Bus business, has led the revolution in ‘low’ floor buses. The company is now focusing on hybrid technology and energy saving drivetrains. Its latest trading update confirmed that the order book had further improved from £24.4m per the interim statement on the 30 September 2010 to over £34m; the group has also forecast a stronger output for 2011. However, the cold and snowy weather conditions that blighted the UK in December adversely affected production, which, combined with a re-phasing of some customer orders from Q4 2010 to early 2011…