Kingfisher slightly lowers its annual targets

The owner of the Castorama, Brico Dépôt, B&Q and Screwfix brands – which has some 2.000 stores in eight countries, mainly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and Poland – reported quarterly sales of 3,22 billion pounds (3,87 billion euros), a very slight drop of 0,6% over a year, in a press release.

"Our business proved resilient in the third quarter. The improvement in performance observed in August and September was offset in October by the impact on consumer confidence of budget discussions in the United Kingdom and France," said the group's CEO Thierry Garnier, quoted in the press release.

In the UK and Ireland, third-quarter sales rose 1,2% to £1,6 billion, while in France they fell 6,4% to £967 million.

"Looking ahead to next year, recent political and macroeconomic developments are casting greater uncertainty over the outlook for our markets," said the CEO.

Kingfisher Group has announced that it now expects adjusted net profit before tax of between £510 million and £540 million for its 2024/25 financial year (ending 31 January), compared with the range of between £510 million and £550 million announced last September.

Its free cash flow target, raised in September, is "unchanged."

In its 2023/24 financial year, Kingfisher recorded an adjusted net profit before tax of 568 million pounds.

"We continue to focus our efforts on what we master: developing our market share by pursuing our strategic priorities, and effectively managing our prices, costs and cash flow. Our group is solidly positioned to take advantage of the turnaround in the home improvement market when it occurs," emphasizes Thierry Garnier.