Kingfisher reports results in line with expectations

“Overall, our activity is in line with our expectations for the first half of the year. “, announcement Thierry Garnier, Group CEO. « Customers continued to carry out repair, maintenance and renovation work in their homes, supporting the good performance of volumes in our “core” categories. As expected, demand for project categories remained weak, in line with what we see in the market, and seasonal sales have improved since early July. In this context, we remained focused on the efficient management of our costs and inventories.

Our UK & Ireland brands continued to gain market sharethanks to strong online sales. In France, our sales were generally in line with the market.reflecting the weakness of the general consumer environment. At the same time, we have made rapid progress in simplifying our organization in France and in improving the performance and profitability of Castorama France in the medium term. In Poland, we have gained market share and our sales have benefited from the improvement in the consumer environment.

JI am proud of our teams’ continued commitment to implementing our strategic priorities.. We have also successfully launched the Castorama France marketplace and are planning to launch it in Poland in the second half of the year. Secondly, regarding sales to professionals, after the success in the United Kingdom, We are now rolling out our proposals in our other markets with penetration among professionals which is progressing strongly in France, the Iberian Peninsula and Poland.

Given our first-half performance and our outlook for activity in our various markets, we have refined our earnings guidance and revised upwards our free cash flow guidance for the year. We remain focused on rigorously managing our costs and cash, as well as implementing our strategic priorities.which should enable us to gain market share tomorrow. With early signs of recovery in the housing market, particularly in the UK, Kingfisher is strongly positioned for growth in 2025 and beyond.”

The highlights of the 1^is semester

Overall turnover in line with expectations with market share gains in the UK and Poland.

• Total turnover at -1.4%, or -2.4% on a comparable basis. Q2 at -3.8% on a comparable basis.
• Resilience of the United Kingdom & Ireland (-0.2% on a comparable basis) as well as Poland (-0.2%) despite seasonal sales penalized by the weather; market share gains for all brands.
• Sales in France (-7.2% on a comparable basis) generally in line with the market, reflecting weak consumption over the period.
• Resilience of turnover in the “core” category, supported by repair, maintenance and renovation work on existing housing. Recovery of seasonal sales since July and, as expected, weakness in sales in the “project” categories.

Proper execution of priority objectives

• Good results from marketplaces (Group GMV +80%) and offers aimed at professionals (including TradePoint +7.1% on a comparable basis). Online sales penetration rate now at 18.3% (H1 23-24: 16.8%).
• Rapid progress of the Castorama France store optimization and modernization plan: planned works in 13 less efficient stores are underway or completed. Operating costs down 3.0% in France in H1.

Rigorous management of gross margin, costs and inventories

• Maintaining competitive price indices and controlled promotional activity on all markets; stabilization of inflation on sales prices compared to last year.
• Cost reductions of around £120m over the full year are well on track, with a marked decline in H1.
• Strict management of net inventories, down £134m (4.3%) year-on-year.

Adjusted pre-tax profit down 0.5% to £334m, including around £25m of one-off property tax refunds for B&Q. Reported pre-tax profit up 2.3% to £324m.

Free Cash Flow of £421 million, supported by a phased approach to inventory purchases over the year.

Perspectives et guidance

• Current activity : Comparable sales in Q3 24/25 (to date) -0.3%
• Adjusted pre-tax profit 24/25: refined guidance of between £510 million and £550 million, compared to a previous range of between £490 million and £550 million.
• Free Cash Flow 24/25: Raising the range to between £410 million and £460 million, compared to a previous range of around £350 million and £410 million.
• Share buybacks : acceleration of the ongoing £300 million share buyback programme (£150 million completed to date); the programme is now expected to be completed by March 2025.
• The Group is in a strong position for growth in 2025 and beyond : increased agility, significant reductions in structural costs at all levels of the Group and confidence in multiple opportunities for profitable growth in the medium term.