|
JD Wetherspoon PLC on Wednesday said half-year sales have increased but costs also were higher than expected, meaning lower profit. The stock was down 6.1% at 693.32 pence per share on Wednesday morning in London. Chair Tim Martin said: ‘Profits in the first half are likely to be lower than the comparable period in the previous financial year.’ The Watford, England-based pub chain’s financial first half ends on January 25, this coming Sunday. It will release its full interim results on March 20. For the 25 weeks ended January 18, this past Sunday, JD Wetherspoon said like-for-like sales increased 4.7% annually. Food sales rose 1.3%, bar sales rose by 6.9%, and slot/fruit machines sales by 9.1%, while hotel room sales decreased 0.7%. For the second quarter, or the last 12 weeks of this period, like-for-like sales increased by 6.1% on-year. For the ‘main Christmas period’ from December 15 to January 4, they climbed by 8.8%. Total sales have increased 5.3% in the year to date, JD Wetherspoon said. ‘We are pleased with the sales growth in the financial year, and with the increased momentum in the second quarter,’ Martin commented. However, he said: ‘Costs have been higher than anticipated, with energy, wages, repairs and business rates, for example, increasing by £45 million in the first 25 weeks.’ Looking ahead, JD Wetherspoon expects interest costs for the year ending July 26, excluding IFRS 16 notional interest, to decrease on-year to £47 million from £49 million. It anticipates debt levels between £740 million and £760 million at the end of the year, up from £724 million a year before. Also, the company plans to open 15 pubs in total during the current year, having opened 6 in the year so far. It also has sold 6 pubs this year, bringing its total managed trading estate to 794 pubs. Wetherspoons said 8 franchised pubs also have opened in the year so far, with 10 to 15 more to open in the remainder of the year, including its first in continental Europe, the Castell de Santa Barbera, which will open on February 9 at the Alicante airport in Spain. Martin commented: ‘If the current sales momentum continues, the company currently anticipates a full year trading outcome slightly below that achieved in FY25.’ Wetherspoon reported pretax profit of £81.4 million in the year that ended July 27, 2025, up 10% from £73.9 million in financial 2024. Revenue improved 4.5% to £2.13 billion from £2.04 billion. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
|
