DB Cargo (UK) Limited
Registered name: DB CARGO (UK) LIMITED
Part of Db Cargo Aktiengesellschaft groupDB Cargo (UK) Limited made £274m revenue and a £12.3m loss in the year to 31 Dec 2024.
DB Cargo (UK) Limited’s revenue grew 3% to £274m in the year to 31 Dec 2024, with a loss of £12.3m and 1,895 employees. The company is classified under “freight rail transport” and is based in Doncaster; we hold 3 years of its filed accounts.
- Status
- Active
- Location
- Doncaster
- Age
- 32 yrs · since 1994
- Type
- Private Limited Company
Key figures
Financial history
| Year to | 31 Dec 2022 | 31 Dec 2023 | 31 Dec 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Disclosure | Full P&L | Full P&L | Full P&L |
| Profit & loss | |||
| Revenue (turnover) | £271m | £268m | £274m |
| Cost of sales | −£298m | −£281m | −£279m |
| Gross profit | −£26.4m | −£13.4m | −£4.7m |
| Operating profit | −£37.5m | −£93.1m | −£16m |
| Profit before tax | −£6.7m | −£90.2m | £1.1m |
| Profit after tax | £3.5m | −£68.6m | −£12.3m |
| Profit (best available) | £3.5m | −£68.6m | −£12.3m |
| Employees (average) | 1,944 | 1,987 | 1,895 |
| Ratios | |||
| Profit margin | 1.3% | −25.6% | −4.5% |
| Gross margin | −9.7% | −5% | −1.7% |
| Revenue per employee | £140k | £135k | £145k |
| Profit per employee | £1.8k | −£34.5k | −£6.5k |
| Growth (year on year) | |||
| Revenue growth | — | ▼1.4% | ▲2.5% |
| Profit growth | — | ▼2058% | — |
| Headcount growth | — | ▲2.2% | ▼4.6% |
| Balance sheet — indirect signals, not revenue | |||
| Net assets | — | — | — |
| Source | Accounts · bulk data Oct 2024 | Accounts · bulk data Oct 2024 | Accounts · bulk data Jul 2025 |
How the business works
- Profit margin
- −4.5%
- Profit ÷ revenue.
- Gross margin
- −1.7%
- Gross profit ÷ revenue. High for software and services.
- Revenue per employee
- £145k
- Revenue ÷ average employees.
- Profit per employee
- −£6.5k
- Profit ÷ average employees.
- Cash conversion
- —
- Cash generated from operations ÷ operating profit. Needs a cash-flow statement.
- Fixed assets ÷ revenue
- —
- Capital intensity. Low = capital-light, cheaper to start.
- Deferred income ÷ revenue
- —
- Customers paying upfront (subscriptions, deposits). Approximate when combined with accruals.
- Debtors ÷ revenue
- —
- Money owed by customers. Low = customers pay quickly.
Balance-sheet signals
Year-on-year changes in filed balance-sheet items. They can hint at momentum (or investment) but are not revenue or profit and must not be read as such.
- Net assets
- —
- Now —
- Cash at bank
- —
- Now —
- Headcount
- ▼5%
- Now 1,895
- Deferred income
- —
- Now —
- Fixed assets
- —
- Now —
Group structure
Ownership chain
- Db Cargo Aktiengesellschaft (registered outside the UK register)ultimate parent75–100%
- DB Cargo (UK) Holdings Limited75–100%
- DB Cargo (UK) Limitedthis company
Bands show the share of ownership each company holds in the one below it.
Subsidiaries (1)
- Locomotive 6667 LimitedFigures not disclosed
Sister companies (3)
- Engineering Support Group LimitedRev. £9.4m · Profit £456k
- DB Cargo International LimitedFigures not disclosed
- DB Cargo Maintenance LimitedFigures not disclosed
From the Persons with Significant Control register (corporate controllers only).
Sources
Latest figures from accounts for the year to 31 Dec 2024 (profit −£12.3m), from the Companies House accounts bulk data published Jul 2025. Spotted an error? Request a correction.
Updated from Companies House on 24 Oct 2026
Contains public sector information from Companies House licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data from Companies House, © Crown copyright. View the licence.