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Marston’s PLC on Wednesday said it expects to report underlying profit for the financial year just ended ahead of market consensus, crediting margin improvement across its chain of 1,300 pubs in the UK. The Wolverhampton, England-based company said market consensus for its underlying pretax profit in the 52-weeks that ended September 27 is £67.2 million. This would be up 60% from £42.1 million in financial 2024, when this line had risen 65% from from £25.6 million in financial 2023. Statutory pretax profit was £14.4 million in financial 2024, swung from a £30.6 million loss the year before. Marston’s said profitability was ‘underpinned by sustained margin expansion through our market-leading pub operating model, including revenue management, labour efficiency and procurement initiatives’. Like for like sales rose 1.6%, and Marston’s says growth continues to outpace the market. It expects recurring free cash flow to exceed, ahead of schedule, the £50 million target set at its capital markets day in October last year. Also delivering on that guidance, Marston’s said, it expects underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation margins to increase on-year by over 100 basis points, representing a ‘step-change in profitability’. As a result, leverage has been reduced, with year-end net debt below a five-times multiple of Ebitda. ‘We have delivered another year of strong profit growth and significantly improved recurring free cash flow, providing us with continued opportunity to invest in our estate, reduce debt and unlock long-term value for shareholders...Our differentiated pub-formats are already delivering impressive results with a defined plan to accelerate this further in FY2026,’ Chief Executive Officer Justin Platt commented. Marston’s will release its full financial 2025 results on November 25. Marston’s shares were up 6.7% to 41.35 pence early Wednesday in London. The stock is down 3.5% over the past 12 months. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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