(Alliance News) - Hornby PLC on Wednesday said it remains optimistic for the festive season despite a weak performance in the first half.
Hornby is a model railway maker and retailer based in Margate, England.
Pretax loss widened to GBP5.1 million for the six months ended September 30, down from GBP4.9 million a year before.
Revenue rose by 10% to GBP25.0 million for the same period, up from GBP22.7 million a year prior. Hornby attributed this discrepancy to rising costs across the firm, despite an improved sales performance.
Finance costs rose by 39% to GBP1.0 million from GBP719,000 a year prior. Admin costs rose by 2.7% to GBP3.8 million for the half, up from GBP3.7 million a year before.
Hornby did not declare an interim dividend, unchanged year-on-year.
Hornby shares were down 19% at 21.00 pence each in London on Wednesday afternoon.
Looking ahead, Hornby remained optimistic, pointing to a strong order book and activities in place for the run-up to Black Friday and the festive period.
Chief Executive Olly Raeburn commented: "Revenue performance versus last year has been solid, and we exit the half year with a clear, and aggressive, plan for maintaining that momentum through the critical Black Friday and Christmas trading periods."
By Lydia Doye, Alliance News reporter
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