// Kingfisher improve forecast after total sales came in at £3.44bn, marking a 60% year-on-year increase
// Total like-for-like sales in the first quarter lifted 64.2% in Q1 and were 22.5% higher on a two-year basis
// UK and Ireland like-for-like sales jump 65% in the three months to April 30, and 38.6% compared to 2019
The parent company of B&Q and Screwfix has hiked its profit forecast as the DIY boom continues to see its sales and like-for-likes skyrocket.
For its first quarter period ending April 30, Kingfisher said total sales came in at £3.44 billion, marking a 60 per cent year-on-year increase.
Like-for-likes also enjoyed soaring growth, with Kingfisher booking a 64.2 per cent increase compared to the same period last year, and a 22.5 per cent increase when compared to the same quarter in 2019 – well before the Covid-19 pandemic forced people to stay home.
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Kingfisher said it enjoyed growing sales ahead of market in its core countries UK and France, and that the strong performance in the latter came despite Covid restrictions affecting the business throughout most of the quarter.
In its UK and Ireland market, Kingfisher saw first quarter sales surge by 66.8 per cent year-on-year to £1.82 billion, while like-for-likes grew 65 per cent compared to last year, and 38.6 per cent compared to 2019.
In France, quarterly sales almost doubled to £1.17 billion, marking a 97.4 per cent year-on-year growth.
On the other hand, Kingfisher said French like-for-like sales growth was a whopping 101.7 per cent compared to last year, and 18.1 per cent compared to 2019.
Kingfisher added that total ecommerce sales for the quarter was up 63 per cent – or a huge 258 per cent compared to the pre-online shopping boom in 2019.
Ecommerce also comprised 21 cent of the firm’s total group sales, compared to 18 per cent at the end of its last financial year.
For its current quarter to date, Kingfisher said like-for-like sales was up by 8.2 per cent, reflecting strong demand as shops reopen across its core markets in the UK and France.
The positive performance prompted the DIY retailer to raise its full-year sales outlook to “mid-to-high teens” from the previous “low double-digit”.
It also expects first half adjusted pre-tax profit to be ahead of previous expectations, in the
range of £580 million to £600 million.
“With the strong start to the year, we now anticipate first half sales and adjusted pre-tax profit to be ahead of our previous expectations,” Kingfisher chief executive Thierry Garnier said.
“Whilst the second half of the financial year remains naturally uncertain, we continue to see supportive long-term trends for our industry and are confident of continued outperformance of our wider markets.”
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