Sainsbury’s announced this morning that due to stronger than expected sales they would be increasing their full year profit before tax expectations to be 5% higher than in 2019. The increased forecasts and market visibility has also allowed the grocery operator to support its shareholders by issuing a special dividend of 7.3p that will be paid in lieu of the final 2019/2020 dividend.
Sainsbury’s also announced the restructuring of Argos that will see all 420 standalone Argos stores close to add a counter or collection point in every Sainsbury’s by March 2024.
Other points of note include:
- 8.2% increase in grocery sales,
- Online grocery sales up 102%
- Like-for-like sales up 6.2%,
- Significant reduction in net debt,
- 90% of Argos sales now online,
- Argos restructuring will cut 3,500 jobs but add 6,000 new roles.
These results are further evidence that consumer behaviour is adapting in the retail and grocery sectors. We believe that this adds further value in the large omnichannel stores that we target and own.
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