(Alliance News) - Kingfisher PLC late Wednesday raised its interim profit guidance as the FTSE 100 DIY retailer said high levels of demand from both new and existing customers has continued.
For the second quarter to date which ended this past Saturday, group like-for-like sales fell 1.3% following growth of 64% in the first quarter.
In the UK & Ireland like-for-like sales rose 3.3% in the second quarter, but fell 8.9% in France where the company operates its Castorama and Brico Depot stores.
Looking ahead, Kingfisher raised its adjusted pretax profit guidance for the six months to July 31, to be in the range of GBP645 million to GBP660 million, up from the previous guidance of GBP580 million to GBP600 million. The company posted interim adjusted pretax profit of GBP415 million for the same period a year prior.
Kingfisher also raised its half-year like-for-like sales guidance to around 22%, from the previous guidance of 'mid-to-high teens' growth.
The B&Q owner also said it was continuing to make progress against 'Powered by Kingfisher' strategic aims, which was driving share growth in key markets.
Chief Executive Officer Thierry Garnier said: "Kingfisher's performance in the second quarter to date has been ahead of expectations, with positive progress against our strategic priorities continuing to drive share growth in our key markets.
"With the strong performance in the quarter to date, we now anticipate first half sales and adjusted pre-tax profit to be ahead of our previous expectations. We continue to be encouraged by the supportive long-term trends for our industry and are confident of continued outperformance of our wider markets. We look forward to providing a detailed update on the 'Powered by Kingfisher' strategy, our performance and full year outlook at our interim results on September 21."
The stock ended 1.4% lower at 362.30 pence in London on Wednesday.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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