Wickes Group (WIX) H1 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Delivered resilient H1 performance with record retail market share gains, strong TradePro and Lifestyle Kitchens growth, and improved Q3 trading trends despite challenging market conditions and a 17% drop in Design & Installation sales.

• TradePro sales rose 14% with active members up 18% to over 1 million; Lifestyle Kitchens sales increased 19%.

• Acquired 51% of Solar Fast for £5.1m, launching Wickes Solar in 50 stores and online, entering the home energy solutions market.

• Opened two new stores, completed three refits, and maintained interim dividend at 3.6p per share.

• Entered FTSE4Good Index, reflecting progress in responsible business strategy and ESG initiatives.

Financial highlights

• H1 2024 revenue was £799.9m, down 3.4% year-over-year; adjusted PBT was £23.4m, down 24.8%; statutory PBT rose 8.5% to £22.9m.

• Retail revenue up 1.0% to £633.2m; Design & Installation revenue down 17% to £166.7m.

• Gross margin increased by 24bps to 36.2%; adjusted operating margin at 4.4%.

• Like-for-like revenue down 3.9% year-over-year, mainly due to lower design and installation sales; Retail LFL sales grew 0.6%.

• Net cash at period end: £152.4m after £29m returned to shareholders via dividends and buybacks.

Outlook and guidance

• Q3 trading shows improved trends in both retail and design & installation; management expects to outperform the market.

• FY24 adjusted PBT outlook remains in line with consensus (£40.4m), supported by cost mitigation and productivity initiatives.

• Capex guidance for 2024 is c.£30m; adjusted tax rate 25–26%; net interest costs £20–25m.

• FY dividend expected to be maintained at 10.6–10.9p; share buyback to complete by end September 2024.

• Store expansion plan targets 4–5 new stores and 7–9 refits per year over the next several years.