(Alliance News) - Kingfisher PLC on Tuesday kept its dividend flat and and announced a new GBP300 million buyback programme as said it was "in its best operational shape for years".
The London-based owner of B&Q and Screwfix reported a 36% decline in its pretax profit for its financial year ended January 31, to GBP307 million from GBP475 million the year before. On an adjusted basis, it fell 7.0% to GBP528 million from GBP568 million.
Its shares were down 11% at 248.10 pence on Tuesday morning in London.
Driving the weaker bottom line was a reduction in sales, falling 1.5% to GBP12.78 billion from GBP12.90 billion.
Increased administrative costs compounded the effect of the softer sales as they grew 13% to GBP1.12 billion from GBP990 million.
The home improvement retailer kept its total dividend unchanged at 12.40 pence.
It also announced a new GBP300 million share buyback programme, following the completion of its prior GBP300 million programme on Thursday. It expects to begin the first tranche "soon", with it noting the completion of GBP900 million in buybacks since September 2021.
Looking ahead, Kingfisher guides adjusted pretax profit of between GBP480 million and GBP540 million. It also guides a free cash flow of between GBP420 million and GBP480 million. This compares to GBP511 million realised in financial 2025.
It added that it remains "confident about the medium to longer-term outlook for the sector".
Chief Executive Thierry Garnier said: "Looking to the year ahead, the recent government budgets in the UK and France have raised costs for retailers and impacted consumer sentiment in the near term. With this in mind, we remain focused on what is in our control - progressing our strategic objectives at pace to deliver further market share gains, and continuing to manage gross margin, costs and cash effectively.
"Kingfisher is in its best operational shape for years, and we remain confident about the growth opportunities in our business."
By Christopher Ward, Alliance News reporter
Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com
Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.