B&Q owner Kingfisher issues new profit warning

B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher issued its third profit warning in six months today amid tough conditions at its European businesses.

- Michael Hunter

Kingfisher’s revenue for its financial year to the end of January slipped 0.8% to £12.9 billion but profit tumbled by more than a fifth to £475 million.

That met reduced guidance, which was trimmed at a trading update issued in November. However, yet another cut came today with the £4.4 billion firm expecting adjusted profit before tax for the current financial year in a range between £490 million and £550 million.

Kingfisher’s shares dived to the bottom of the FTSE 100, down by more than 2% to 228p, a drop of over 5p.

It pointed to “a more challenging consumer backdrop” at its Castorama chain, which is among the most famous names in home improvement in France and Poland.

In the UK and Ireland, its two main brands were faring better. B&Q and Screwfix had “positive” sales “alongside consistent market share gains”.

Nonetheless, like-for-like sales in the first quarter of the current financial year were down by 2.3%.