A modest 1.3 per cent rise in like-for-like sales combined with cost savings and margin improvements drove underlying operating profits up 20 per cent to £807m at DIY giant Kingfisher performed last year. Moreover, having delivered on its four-year ‘Delivering Value’ programme, a new five-year plan has been announced to target an extra £300m annualised retail profits by the fifth year.
Sales in France – a market that is now bigger for Kingfisher than the UK – grew by 3.7 per cent on a like-for-like basis to £4.47bn and operating profit surged by almost 22 per cent to £423m as a result of several self-help initiatives including greater use of direct sourcing. Trading in the UK and Ireland remained tough, highlighted by a 1.4 per cent fall in like-for-like sales to £4.34bn, but once again efficiency measures pushed profits ahead by 11.6 per cent to £271m. The group also spent £24m buying 31 leasehold properties from the defunct Focus DIY chain.
Overseas sales (excluding France) grew 2.2 per cent, underpinned by strong growth in Russia and Poland, while profits grew almost 10 per cent to £188m, helped by smaller losses in China – £3m down from £8m.
Ahead of these figures, Investec Securities was forecasting 2013 normalised pre-tax profits of £839m, EPS of 25.7p and a dividend of 9.5p (from £807m and 25.1p in 2012).
| KINGFISHER (KGF) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 296p | MARKET VALUE: | £7.0bn | |
| TOUCH: | 296-297p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 305p | LOW: 204p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3% | PE RATIO: | 11 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 241p* | NET DEBT: | 2% | |
| Year to 28 Jan | Turnover (£bn) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 9.1 | 366 | 10.9 | 7.25 |
| 2009 | 10.0 | 90.0 | 0.20 | 5.33 |
| 2010 | 10.5 | 566 | 16.5 | 5.50 |
| 2011 | 10.5 | 671 | 21.0 | 7.07 |
| 2012 | 10.8 | 797 | 27.5 | 8.84 |
| % change | +4 | +19 | +31 | +25 |
Ex-div: 2 May Payment: 18 Jun *Includes intangible assets of £2.5bn, or 106p a share | ||||
