ARNOLD CLARK AUTOMOBILES LIMITED
Operating under the Arnold Clark brand, the company is a family-owned independent motor retailer based in Scotland that provides new and used vehicle sales, vehicle maintenance, and car rental services across the UK.
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Cash
£504M
+9.9% vs 2023
Net assets
£1.6B
+4.2% vs 2023
Employees
11,586
-0.9% vs 2023
Profit before tax
£121M
+4.1% vs 2023
Net assets
2-year trend · vs Consumer Discretionary median
Accounts
2-year trend · Δ = latest vs prior filed period · latest reflected 2024-12-31
| Metric | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 | Δ vs prior |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £4,964,800,000 | £5,152,200,000 | +3.8% | |
| Operating profit | £148,600,000 | £155,600,000 | +4.7% | |
| Profit before tax | £116,000,000 | £120,700,000 | +4.1% | |
| Net profit | £85,000,000 | £84,900,000 | -0.1% | |
| Cash | £458,700,000 | £504,000,000 | +9.9% | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | £1,935,600,000 | £1,997,200,000 | +3.2% | |
| Net assets | £1,510,600,000 | £1,573,600,000 | +4.2% | |
| Equity | £1,510,600,000 | £1,573,600,000 | +4.2% | |
| Average employees | 11,694 | 11,586 | -0.9% | |
| Wages | £414,500,000 | £430,900,000 | +4% | |
| Directors' remuneration | £10,600,000 | £12,900,000 | +21.7% |
Values shown as filed in the company's annual accounts. — indicates the figure wasn't present under that line item in that period. The Δ column is the change from the prior filed period as a percentage of |prior|; lines a company doesn't report show —. About these numbers
Ratios
Computed from the line items above — sparklines read oldest → newest
| Ratio | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 3.0% | 3.0% | |
| Net margin | 1.7% | 1.6% | |
| Return on capital employed | 7.7% | 7.8% | |
| Gearing (liabilities / total assets) | 53.3% | 53.7% | |
| Current ratio | 1.23x | 1.18x | |
| Interest cover | 3.11x | 2.73x |
Margins divide P&L lines by turnover. Gearing is liabilities over total assets. Current ratio is current assets over creditors falling due within one year. Interest cover is operating profit over absolute finance costs. Sector-distribution context coming next.
Audit & accounting basis
- Accounting basis
- FRS 102
- Reporting scope
- Consolidated group
- Auditor
- Deloitte LLP
- Audit opinion
- Unqualified (clean)
- Going concern
- Affirmed
“We have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the Group's and Parent Company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.”
Group structure
- ARNOLD CLARK AUTOMOBILES LIMITED · parent
- Arnold Clark Finance Ltd 100%
- Arnold Clark Holdings (Malta) Ltd 100%
- Arnold Clark Insurance Services Ltd 100%
- Artex Insurance (ACAT)7 IC Ltd 100%
- Assure Alarms Ltd 100%
- Bumblebee EV Ltd 100%
- Central Car Auctions Ltd 100%
- GTG Training Ltd 100%
Significant events
- “During 2024, we renewed much of our Contract Hire and Daily Rental fleets, with the underlying value of these vehicles now standing at £893m (2023: £989m). This was largely funded using hire purchase agreements and our liability now stands at £682m (2023: £641m).”
- “During 2024, we expanded our dealership network following the acquisition of various operations. Twenty four sites across the UK at a total cost of £25m. This increases our representation of Renault, Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Fiat, Mazda and Jeep, through our new dealerships in Liverpool, Wirral, Cramlington, Kirkcaldy, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Sunderland and Stockport.”
- “We also embedded our new EV focused manufacturer partners BYD, Genesis, Omoda, Ora. Jaecoo and Omado into our branch network structure. We now retail these brands through 10 of our locations and delivered 982 new vehicles during the year.”
- “The construction and development of our own EV charging network (Arnold Clark Charge) continued during 2024, with 48 sites now operational and a further 14 under construction. This £3.0m infrastructure investment, once complete, will result in over 600 EV ultra-fast chargers available for use around 400 of our sites across our branch network, from Inverness to Southampton. This network will enable our customers to pre-book a charging slot, in a safe and monitored environment, allowing them to avoid any charging anxiety with their EV.”
Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers
People
6 active · 11 resigned
| Name | Role | Appointed | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| THORPE, Stuart Kenneth | Secretary | 2013-11-19 | — | — |
| BORRIE, Russell Edgar | Director | 2016-01-22 | Feb 1969 | British |
| CLARK, John Arnold | Director | 2016-01-22 | Jun 1973 | British |
| CLARK, Philomena Butler, Lady | Director | — | Jan 1947 | British |
| COOPER, David Martin | Director | 2016-01-22 | Jan 1973 | British |
| HAWTHORNE, Edward | Director | 1998-08-01 | Dec 1966 | British |
Show 11 resigned officers
| Name | Role | Appointed | Resigned |
|---|---|---|---|
| KERR, Dugald Ferguson | Secretary | — | 2011-05-27 |
| MCLEAN, Kenneth John | Secretary | 2011-05-27 | 2013-11-19 |
| CLARK, John Arnold | Director | — | 2017-04-10 |
| GALL, Walter Glen Paterson | Director | — | 2024-02-05 |
| GRAHAM, James Turner | Director | 2021-12-01 | 2024-02-05 |
| GRANT, Scott Ross | Director | 2021-12-01 | 2024-02-05 |
| HENRY, Carol Shirley | Director | 2021-12-01 | 2024-02-05 |
| KERR, Dugald Ferguson | Director | 1998-08-01 | 2011-05-27 |
| MCLEAN, Kenneth John | Director | 1998-08-01 | 2021-12-01 |
| WALLACE, Hugh Dawson | Director | 1998-08-01 | 2015-05-19 |
| WILLIES, Scott | Director | 1998-08-01 | 2021-12-01 |
Ownership
Persons with significant control
| Name | Kind | Nature of control | Notified | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mr Adam Hugh Wallace Clark | Individual | Shares 25–50% (as trust), Voting 25–50% (as trust) | 2021-09-16 | Active |
| Mr John Arnold Clark | Individual | Shares 75–100% (as trust), Voting 75–100% (as trust) | 2021-09-16 | Active |
| Jagc Holdings | Corporate entity | Shares 25–50% | 2021-09-16 | Active |
| Sir John Arnold Clark | Individual | Significant influence | 2016-07-01 | Ceased 2017-04-10 |
| Lady Philomena Butler Clark | Individual | Shares 75–100% (as trust), Voting 75–100% (as trust) | 2016-07-01 | Active |
Filing timeline
Last 20 of 183 total filings
Material constitutional events — rename, articles re-file, resolution
- 2024-01-10 MA Memorandum articles
- 2024-01-03 RESOLUTIONS Resolution
| Date | Type | Category | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-26 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2026-03-23 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2025-06-30 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type group | |
| 2025-06-26 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2025-06-12 | MR01 | mortgage | Mortgage create with deed with charge number charge creation date | |
| 2025-04-07 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2024-11-07 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2024-11-06 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2024-11-06 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2024-11-06 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2024-11-06 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type group | |
| 2024-03-25 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2024-02-05 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-02-05 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-02-05 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-02-05 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2024-01-10 | MA | incorporation | Memorandum articles | |
| 2024-01-03 | RESOLUTIONS | resolution | Resolution | |
| 2023-09-22 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type group | |
| 2023-03-27 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates |
Public-record activity
Raw counts from Companies House — last 12–24 months
- Filings
- 2
- Capital events
- 0
- Officers appointed
- 0
- Officers resigned
- 0
last 12 months
last 24 months
last 12 months
last 12 months
Direct counts from the register. No score, no rating — see the Filing timeline for the underlying events.