Kingfisher: stock up as profit better than expected

(CercleFinance.com) - Kingfisher reported a 44% increase in FY profit on Monday, which is better-than-expected performance, with the group also providing a positive outlook for its new financial year.


The British group - which owns the B&Q and Screwfix DIY stores in the UK and Ireland and operates under the Castorama and Brico Depôt brands in France - reported adjusted pre-tax profit of 786 million pounds for the year to 31 January, up 44% from 544 million pounds a year ago.

By comparison, analysts at RBC were expecting profit of 758 million pounds.

Revenues rose by 7.2% to 12.3 billion pounds, compared to 12.2 billion pounds forecast by RBC.

In a statement, Kingfisher said it plans to propose a dividend of 8.25p for the past financial year and referred to a "good start to the year" for its new financial year, with like-for-like sales up 24% in the period of 1 February to 18 March.

For the first half of its new financial year, like-for-like sales growth is thus expected to be between 10% and 15%.

In a reaction note, analysts at RBC - who have an "outperform" rating on the stock - highlight the "effective" strategy implemented by the new management team in terms of digital offerings, inventory and cost control.

As a result, Kingfisher's shares were up about 5% on the London Stock Exchange on Monday morning, compared with a 0.1% fall in the FTSE 100 index.



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