Capita puts rivals in the shade with £1.1bn contracts

Outsourcer Capita continued to race ahead of its embattled rivals G4S and Serco, picking up £1.1 billion in new contracts so far this year.

The new orders - including a five-year deal with Transport for London to operate the congestion charging and low emissions zones - have boosted Capita’s bid pipeline to £5.5 billion, putting it on track to meet full-year expectations.

Capita has also weathered the departure of long-serving chief executive Paul Pindar in March to avoid the calamities of scandal-struck G4S and Serco, both facing a criminal probe by the Serious Fraud Office over the tagging of dead prisoners.

The company has also spent £201 million this year on six acquisitions, boosting its IT and software arms and moving Capita into mortgage processing for the first time.

Shares were virtually flat at 1102.5p today but broker Panmure Gordon lifted its target price to 1200p.

Analyst James Cooke said: “We believe there is good potential for earnings upgrades as we progress through the year.”