Turners on track for $100m profit
Turners Automotive Group has announced a record normalised net profit before tax (NPBT) of $63.2 million for the year ended March 2026, an increase of 16 per cent from the previous financial year.
The company says its three core automotive divisions – auto retail, finance and insurance – all delivered profit growth, with the last three months of the 2026 financial year a record quarter for the business.
The result brings forward the group’s $65m NPBT target set for the 2028 financial year to 2027, which would be the third successive multi-year target it has met or exceeded ahead of schedule.
Turners notes the latest profit also lays the foundation for its $100m NPBT target by 2031, which was outlined at its investor day in March this year.
Other highlights for the 2026 financial year included revenue rising nine per cent year-on-year to $451.2m and earnings before interest and tax climbing 14 per cent to $70.6m.
Normalised net profit after tax grew 18.2 per cent to $45.6m and the full-year dividend is 33 cents per share, up 14 per cent from a year ago.
Turners announced the results to the NZX on May 21 and says the past year had two distinct halves.
“The first half was constrained by a soft consumer environment and tight margins; the second half delivered a strong recovery as consumer confidence improved through the year, and Turners benefitted from proactive stock management, culminating in a record profit performance in Q4,” it explains.
“In late March, the onset of the Iran-US conflict softened momentum, and Turners has deployed the same operational playbook applied successfully through the FY24 and FY25 macro downturns.”
The auto retail division’s revenue rose 10 per cent to $315.3m and profit was up 12 per cent to $32.6m, while finance clocked $77m in revenue and $19.2m in profit, up 13 per cent and 19 per cent respectively.
As for its insurance operations, revenue grew five per cent year-on-year to $50.2m and profit rose seven per cent to $17.3m.
Todd Hunter, group chief executive officer, describes the record result as a significant achievement and a credit to the entire team.
“Demand was soft in the first half, but our team’s discipline on stock, margin and credit through the second half culminated in a record Q4,” he says.
“Each of our three core automotive divisions delivered profit growth, and the integrated platform continues to compound as we expand our network and our customer base.
“Our finance division has been a standout result in the last 12 months, growing new lending by over 50 per cent and loan book growth of 27 per cent.”
Hunter adds that the group sets tough targets and “we love to exceed them”.
“We delivered our $45m FY24 NPBT target a year early, our $50m FY25 NPBT target a year early, and we now expect to deliver our $65m FY28 NPBT target a year early as well, in FY27.
“With the Iran–US conflict softening early FY27 trading, we have already deployed the same tough macro playbook we ran in FY24 and FY25. This is a business that knows how to perform and still grow across cycles.”
Grant Baker, chairman, adds the 2026 result shows the company is on track to its ambition of reaching $100m NPBT by FY2031, supported by network expansion, lending growth, deeper integration of its automotive platform, and a discipline of 15 per cent return on equity.
Outlook
Turners says the fourth quarter of the 2026 financial year was a record quarter for the business but the Iran-US conflict softened consumer demand in late March and April trading was similarly subdued.
“As with all businesses, there is uncertainty as to how long this will last,” the company adds.
“However, management has deployed the same operational playbook that has guided Turners through prior macro downturns since Covid, including disciplined inventory positioning, selective buying, and the maintenance of credit quality, whilst continuing to invest in branch expansion.
“Despite the softening in auto retail transactions, Turners Group benefits from diversification, with continued momentum from its annuity businesses – finance and insurance – and finance in particular taking market share.”
As a result, the group expects to make strong progress towards its future profit targets.
Auto retail is set to benefit from a full-year contribution from branch openings of the past year, and finance is positioned to make gains from a materially larger loan book and stable margins.
“FY27 will be a year of network groundwork rather than network expansion, with no new retail branches scheduled to open, but four new branches and two replacement branches currently in development for opening across FY28,” the group explains.
“Looking further out, the progress made during FY26 across all businesses keeps Turners firmly on track toward its $100m FY31 NPBT target, the next of the four multi-year targets the group has set since FY21.”
Update by business
Auto retail
The first half saw constrained sourcing and tight margins as consumer demand was soft. Through the second half, sourcing initiatives, pricing optimisation and stock discipline established in the first half delivered strong margin expansion.
Total owned units sold lifted nine per cent, with continued focus on the lower-priced segment where demand has been most resilient.
Operational efficiency gains supported higher stock turn and lower working capital. The three new Christchurch branches opened in the first half of the 2026 financial year are now fully operational and have driven a 22 per cent increase in local units sold through the Christchurch region.
The Tina 2.0 brand campaign launched in May 2025 lifted media spend by 15 per cent to $5.1m, with messaging now spanning sourcing and selling.
Finance
Finance delivered a record result and the loan book grew 27 per cent from $447m to $566m, driven by consumer lending growth, while credit policy remained disciplined and tightened through the year.
Premium-tier lending now represents 59 per cent of the ledger, up from 56% at March 2025.
Consumer arrears were 2.5 per cent at March 2026, compared with the industry average of 5.6 per cent, among the widest gaps the business has ever recorded.
Net interest margin lifted to 5. Per cent%, supported by stabilising cost of funds and continued repricing of the book.
Insurance
Insurance continued its steady growth over recent years, with strong premium growth overall.
Key dealer and finance broker partnerships remained the primary driver of premium growth, providing scale and consistency.
Direct-to-consumer offering for comprehensive motor vehicle insurance provided another useful diversified revenue stream. Claims cost inflation has been well managed despite ongoing global supply chain pressures.
Digital distribution capability was strengthened during the year, including the launch of a new mechanical breakdown insurance product for the “private to private” car market. Early sales activity has been encouraging and this validates this channel as a complementary, scalable growth opportunity.
New partners – VTNZ, Gaspy and Quashed – were also added during the year increasing Autosure’s digital footprint.
Turners Servicing & Repairs
Completed rebrand to Turners Servicing and Repairs to leverage strong brand awareness and equity in the “Turners” brand.
Cross-sell, upsells and reminders with Turners’ wider customer base are starting to contribute, such as service plans sold with cars.
The division is also continuing to roll out mobile mechanics in locations to mirror the Turners’ network.
EC Credit management
Revenue of $8.5m was down 17 per cent from the previous year and NPBT fell 49 per cent to $1.8m, excluding an EC Credit goodwill write-down.
Referral volumes were constrained throughout the year as several large corporate clients placed temporary holds on debt referrals during major system implementations, while consumers found it harder to consistently meet payment arrangements.
Collections performance remained resilient, with debt collected broadly in line with the 2025 financial year and ahead of 2024.
EC Credit is non-core to Turners’ integrated automotive platform strategy. Going forward, the business will be managed for cash, with capital progressively reallocated to higher-returning core operations.
