Ahern Rentals second-quarter revenues increased 30 percent from $63.3 million in the second quarter of 2006 to $82.2 million in the period ended June 30. Equipment rentals jumped 24 percent from $56.4 million in Q206 to $70 million in this year’s second quarter. Same branch revenues increased 19 percent year over year for the second quarter, a 10.8-percent hike, and an additional $2.9 million in revenue came from branches that were not yet open in 2006.

Ahern Rentals attributed the increased volume to growth in the number of units available for rent as a result of capital expenditures that increased the average original cost of the rental fleet to $610 million from $445 million in 2006, offset by a decrease in average dollar utilization from 51 percent in the year-ago quarter to 46 percent this year.

Sales of rental equipment in 2007 increased 93 percent or $4.1 million year over year, as a result of the strong retail and secondary demand for rental equipment. The company sold 75 percent more equipment units than in 2006, because of increase in overall business and increased emphasis on auction sales to realize value on older or under-utilized rental fleet.

For the first six months of 2007, total revenue jumped from $118.9 million to $153.4 million, a 29-percent year-over-year hike. Rental volume for the six-month period increased from $105.9 million in 2006 to $133.6 million in 2007, an increase of 26.1 percent.

However, as a result of increased interest expense, net income decreased for the quarter from $6.5 million in last year’s second quarter, to $4.4 million this year. For the six-month period, net income dropped from $10.2 million last year to $6.9 million in this year’s first half. The increase in interest rates resulted from a modest increase in average interest rates and higher average debt balances to fund the growth in the company’s fleet of rental and non-rental equipment.

Ahern Rentals, No. 11 on the RER 100, opened a branch last month in Oklahoma City.