Trading update shows like-for-like sales in UK&I up 13 per cent in Q4 and eight per cent for year-ending May 2
Dixons Carphone says that it expected full year group profits to top £375 million as it released its Q4 trading update.
The results, which covered the 17 weeks ending May 2, revealed that UK and Ireland like-for-like revenues (which excluded new store openings) were up 13 per cent in Q4 and eight per cent over the year.
Group revenue was up nine and six per cent respectively over the same period. The company will publish its full group results, its first post-merger, on 16 July.
Profits are ahead of previous guidelines of £355-£375 million. During the quarter the company disposed of its “non-core” operations in Germany and Holland.
Group chief executive Sebastien James (pictured right) revealed that there were now 233 Carphone Warehouse stores-within-stores open in Currys/PC World. In a statement, he hailed the integration work that has taken place between the two companies following the £3.7 billion merger.
“Nearly a year into our merger, I am very pleased to be posting such a strong first full year trading statement for our combined Dixons Carphone Group,” said James.
“Good trading, driven by market share gain and by strong promotional periods – including Easter – coupled with successfully streamlining the Group’s international assets, means that we are now guiding PBT to be slightly above the top end of our previously disclosed range for the full year.
“On the integration, our teams should be very proud of the progress that we have made. A very committed group of people has achieved this; it has required not just hard work, but also pragmatism – and a willingness to roll up sleeves and get stuck in.
“By the autumn, in the UK, Ireland and Sweden, we will have moved our head offices, begun moving our logistics and our repair centres, built integrated management teams and opened almost 280 new mobile stores. This is tricky to achieve – to say the least – and I would like to record my thanks to the teams for making it look so comparatively easy.”
He also hailed its recently launched Three MVNO, iD, which is “doing everything that we hoped it would”.