Heightened seasonal demand has enabled Halfords to upgrade its full-year profit expectations, with stronger-than-expected trading in the first months of its new financial year.
The motoring and cycling specialist now expects underlying profit before tax for FY27 to come in between £55m and £65m, ahead of current consensus of £52.6m. The previous consensus range was £48.9m to £55.1m.
Halfords said it had continued to outperform in recent months, building on the momentum reported in its FY26 results. The group attributed the performance to progress against its strategic priorities, alongside a particularly strong performance from seasonal categories.
Unusually warm summer weather has provided an additional boost to demand, with Halfords estimating that the heightened seasonal demand has generated incremental profit in the “mid-single digit millions of pounds”.
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The retailer cautioned that the stronger performance means FY27 is now expected to be more heavily weighted towards the first half. Halfords plans to accelerate investment in technology and marketing during the second half of the year, which is expected to affect the timing of profit delivery.
The update comes as Halfords continues to operate a broad store and services estate, including 370 Halfords stores, two Performance Cycling stores trading as Tredz and 496 consumer garages. The group also operates 92 commercial fleet locations and around 250 mobile service vans.
The company’s AGM will take place on 10 September, with its half-year trading update, covering the 26 weeks to 2 October, scheduled for 21 October.
The upgraded outlook provides a positive start to Halfords’ FY27, although the company’s reliance on unusually strong seasonal demand and increased investment later in the year will be key factors to watch as the financial year progresses.
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