Like most British companies, Kingfisher reports sales growth quarterly and updates on profits only at the half-year and full-year.

3Q17 UPDATE

With pound-denominated results flattered by the weakening of sterling, Kingfisher reported 3Q17 sales were up 11.5%. At constant currency, however, group sales nudged up 1.3%, while comps came in at +1.8%. Performance weakened sequentially from 1H17, when total sales were up 2.7% and comps were up 3.3%. Softer top-line results in the UK and a steeper decline in sales in France in 3Q17 contributed to the slowdown of growth. CEO Véronique Laury said that trading conditions followed a similar trend to those seen in 1H17, and that Kingfisher’s performance was “solid” and in line with expectations. The UK and Poland drove group sales growth, offsetting a weaker performance in France. All the figures below are at constant currency.

• UK & Ireland: Sales grew 2.5%, with comps jumping 5.8% (compared to a 6.7% increase in 1H17). This was driven by comps of +12.7% at Screwfix, which is likely to have benefitted from the maturing of its substantial number of newer stores. B&Q posted comps of +3.5%, which included an estimate 2% benefit from the transfer of sales from store closures.
• France: Sales in France were down 2.6% in total and down 3.6% on a comparable-store basis (compared to comps of (1.6)% in 1H17). Consumer-focused Castorama posted comps of (3.8)%, while trade-focused Brico Dépôt reported comps of (3.3)%.
• Poland: Sales in Poland increased by 9.5% in total and by 6.7% on a comparable basis.
• Russia: Russian sales fell 0.2% in total, but were up 1.0% on a comparable basis.
• Spain: Sales in Spain were down 0.2% in total and down 1.3% on a comparable basis.

OUTLOOK

Kingfisher offered no guidance. For FY17, analysts expect the company to grow revenues by 7.2% to £11.2 billion, EBIT to climb by 8.7% and GAAP EPS to rise by 26.4% to 22.5 pence.