Kingfisher H1 profit rises, lifts annual adjusted PBT forecast

Overview

• UK home improvement retailer's H1 revenue grew slightly, driven by higher customer transactions

• Adjusted EPS for H1 rose 16% yr/yr, supported by profit growth

• Company upgraded FY guidance and continued £300 mln share buyback, £125 mln purchased to date

Outlook

• Kingfisher raises FY 26/27 adjusted PBT guidance to £595m-£635m from £565m-£625m

• Company lifts FY 26/27 free cash flow outlook to £480m-£520m from £450m-£510m

• Kingfisher says consumer environment remains mixed but sees confidence in upgraded guidance

Result Drivers

• GROSS MARGIN EXPANSION - Co said profit growth was driven by a 70bps increase in gross margin, attributed to buying and sourcing scale, marketplace growth, retail media, FX tailwinds and the sale of Romania, partly offset by freight and higher trade share

• COST CONTROL & ONE-OFF REFUND - Disciplined cost control and a £14 mln UK business rates refund supported adjusted pre-tax profit growth

• TRADE AND E-COMMERCE MOMENTUM - Strong growth in trade sales (+16% ex-Screwfix) and e-commerce (+16% ex-Screwfix), with increased penetration, contributed to overall performance

Company press release:

Key Details

*Applies to a deviation of less than 1%; not applicable for per-share numbers.

Analyst Coverage

• The current average analyst rating on the shares is "hold" and the breakdown of recommendations is 5 "strong buy" or "buy", 10 "hold" and 3 "sell" or "strong sell"

• The average consensus recommendation for the home improvement products & services retailers peer group is "buy."

• Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Kingfisher PLC is GBp311.00, about 1.7% above its September 21 closing price of GBp305.70

• The stock recently traded at 11 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 11 three months ago

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(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)