Pets at Home has said its retail turnaround plan remains on track as it reiterated full-year profit guidance ahead of its annual results.

In a pre-close trading update covering the year to March 2026, the retailer said its strategy to improve product, price, execution and cost is progressing, with both volume growth and like-for-like sales growth delivered during the period and fourth-quarter performance improving sequentially on the third quarter.

The group said it had made a number of price investments over the year and completed £20m of overhead savings as part of its efforts to strengthen the retail business.

Pets at Home expects its retail division to deliver underlying pre-tax profit of around £30m for the full year, while its veterinary arm is forecast to generate pre-tax profit of about £83m, shared between the group and its independent vet partners.

Total group underlying profit before tax for FY26 is expected to come in at around £92m, in line with previous guidance.

The retailer also said it welcomed the Competition and Markets Authority’s final report into the veterinary services market and does not expect any adverse impact on the growth strategy or ambitions of its Vet Group as a result.

Pets at Home added that it expects to end the year with net debt of £20m, having returned around £85m to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks.

The update marks a further sign of progress for the business after it launched a turnaround plan for its retail arm in November, following a first-half decline in group sales and profit.

The company is also preparing for a leadership change, with former Waitrose managing director James Bailey due to take over as chief executive at the end of this month.

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