RETAILERS have enjoyed a springtime boost from favourable weather, but Halfords and the Argos and Homebase owner Home Retail Group are expected to say trading conditions remain tough when they update the market this week.
Halfords will report back on a tough year on Thursday after a poor Christmas for sales of bicycles and satellite navigation systems more than offset a boost to demand for car maintenance products during a harsh winter.
Poor availability caused by teething problems at its new warehouse in Coventry and problems with suppliers in the Far East contributed to the pressure on sales, particularly for children’s bikes over Christmas.
Demand for premium cycles under the Government’s Cycle to Work scheme, which provides tax-free bikes to workers on a salary sacrifice scheme, was impacted by recent rule changes introduced by HM Revenue and Customs.
Halfords has reported a recovery for bicycle sales since then, but added that car maintenance sales went into reverse over the spring as a result of tough comparatives with a year earlier.
That led to the company warning that full-year pre-tax profits for the year to April 1 were likely to be between £124m and £127m, down from a previous range of £127m to £135m. The previous year the company reported pre-tax profits of £109.7m.
Consensus estimates for group revenues and pre-tax profits are set at £869m and £125m respectively.
The broader retail sector received a boost from the recordbreaking warm weather in April, so the City will want to see if this has had an impact on Halfords’ performance.
Argos and Homebase owner Home Retail Group, which reports first-quarter figures on Thursday, will be under pressure to show its fortunes have improved since April’s dismal annual results. The company posted a 13 per cent plunge in profits for the year to February 26 after falling sales at its two retail brands.
Home Retail has already warned of an uncertain year ahead as consumers are squeezed by the January VAT hike and Government austerity measures.
The group said in April that it is planning on the basis that like-for-like sales will decline by low-to-mid single digits at Argos and will be broadly flat at Homebase.
But official figures revealed the record-breaking warm weather in April gave retailers a boost, which could be reflected in Home Retail’s first quarter update.
Companies reporting this week include:
Today – Finals: Eckoh, Workspace.
Tomorrow – Finals: Findel.
Wednesday – Finals: New Look.
Trading update: Punch Taverns.
Thursday – Halfords, Wincanton.
Trading updates: Home Retail Group, PZ Cussons. Morrisons AGM.
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