Britain's Most Admired Companies 2021: The biggest climbers

Stagecoach

Up 178 (233 → 55)

The Scottish transport group has spent years streamlining its operations and has now entirely exited passenger rail and shed most of its overseas assets to focus on buses – it operates more than a quarter of all bus routes in the UK. That meant 2020 was a troublesome year, but passenger numbers have since rebounded impressively and the business has plenty of cash thanks to astute management, which has made it a takeover target for larger competitors. A shortage of drivers is the only cloud on the horizon, but it believes it can cope and can benefit from new government rules on co-operation with local authorities.

Carnival

Up 174 (227 → 53)