Ashtead Group


Ashtead Group plc is a British industrial equipment rental company formerly based in Leatherhead, Surrey, but which has since moved to new offices in the City of London. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.

History

Ashtead was founded in 1947, in the village of Ashtead, Surrey, as Ashtead Plant and Tool Hire. In 1986, it was first listed on the London Stock Exchange. In 1990, it bought Sunbelt Rentals. In October 2006, it acquired NationsRent Inc for $1bn. In June 2008, it sold Ashtead Technology in a management buyout deal. It bought Pride Equipment Corporation for US $279 million in April 2017.
In November 2018, it was announced that Geoff Drabble would retire as CEO after twelve years on 1 May 2019, and would be succeeded by Brendan Horgan, the Group COO and chief executive of Sunbelt Rentals, Ashtead's North American business.

Operations

The company operates internationally, servicing customers in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. Approximately 85% of its revenue is generated in the United States through the subsidiary Sunbelt Rentals, currently present in six hundred locations across the United States and Canada.

British operations

Sunbelt Rentals, formerly known as A-Plant, is present in over 185 locations throughout the United Kingdom, and has the following divisions: