The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.
(Questions from industry analysts are provided in full, but answers are omitted - download the transcript to see the full question-and-answer session)
Question: Rajesh Kumar - HSBC, Research Division - Analyst
: Just in terms of COVID-19 impact. As a lot of things are changing, are there any new opportunity sets coming up? I noticed you talked about a bit
more digital innovation and things like that, but in terms of market segments, are there any new market segments that you think might be more
relevant in the next 3 to 5 years resulting from the way the world has changed post COVID-19? Or you would expect the world to change post
COVID 19?
And the second one is when you talk about small customers. Obviously, they are struggling more. Understand that, but they also tend to hold their
assets for longer than an Ashtead or a United Rentals. So just coming -- just thinking about the CapEx they would have spent about 10 years back
or 7 years, 8 or 9 years back, they would be selling in next couple of years. So what are your thoughts on the supply in secondhand market? And
what does that mean for rates?
Question: Andrew J. Wilson - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division - Analyst
: I'll try and keep it brief, mindful of the time. I've a question around Specialty. And if I sort of look at how the Specialty business has grown and I look
at how it's performing in this downturn, if I was one of your competitors, I would probably be allocating a lot more capital to Specialty than I have
before. So I'm kind of interested in if you think they will, if they have the capability and the balance sheet to do so. And if actually, conversely, more
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JUNE 16, 2020 / 10:00AM, AHT.L - Q4 2020 Ashtead Group PLC Earnings Call
of your competitors trying to do more in Specialty might actually be good news given that it sort of, I guess, further legitimizes it almost as an
option for more of these nonconstruction buyers effectively or potential renters who used to be buyers.
So just very interested in terms of, I guess, how and sort of how this downturn might actually change people's approach to Specialty.
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