// JD Sports announces that its annual results will ahead of previous expectations, expecting full-year headline profit before tax to be at least £900m
// The retailer said strong trading across Black Friday and Christmas continued into January, boosting profits
JD Sports has said that its annual results will be slightly ahead of previous expectations after strong trading across Black Friday and Christmas continued into January, boosting the firm’s overall expectations for the year.
However, the athleisurewear retailer said the results for the financial year that ended January 29 will be delayed to give KPMG time to complete its audit and to allow JD Sports to report on the outcome of the divestment of Footasylum Ltd with “greater certainty”.
Earlier this week, JD and Footasylum were handed fines for almost £5 million by the UK Competition & Markets Authority which said the two businesses had exchanged commercially sensitive information in breach of its orders.
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JD purchased Footasylum back in March 2019 for £90.1 million, and the deal has since been the subject of CMA investigations and orders related to the deal.
In November last year, the CMA ordered JD to sell the footwear seller to address concerns about competition and to protect consumers.
JD added: “Further, [the results delay] will also enable the group to complete a review of its governance procedures and policies in light of the ongoing process to divide the current joint role of executive chairman and chief executive officer which the group expects to update on as part of its final results.”
Guiding on the actual financial results, JD said it expects full-year headline profit before tax and exceptional items to be at least £900 million.
This would be more than double the £421.3 million achieved in the 2021 financial year, and is up from a prior forecast of £875 million.
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