Kingfisher (KGF:LON) posted a 0.8% rise in Q1 like-for-like sales to £2.59 billion. The group which operates in excess of 12,000 in 11 countries said retail profit on a constant basis rose 1.4% to £150m.
Kingfisher enjoyed solid results from UK based businesses Screwfix and B&Q and is positive on the outlook for European businesses given the backdrop of ECB stimulus.
“We have made a solid start to the year against strong comparatives. In the UK, B&Q continued to grow sales volumes and Screwfix delivered an excellent performance, opening its 400(th) store in May. In France, our businesses performed broadly in line with the market.” Said CEO Veronique Laury
The ‘One’ Kingfisher plan is also starting to bear fruit. The initiative set about unifying the group from the top down with active engagement from senior management.
“We are also making good early progress with our ‘ONE’ Kingfisher plan to unlock our potential by creating a single, unified company where customer needs come first. Our first ‘sharp’ decisions are being worked on at pace. I am delighted that Arja Taaveniku, our Chief Offer & Supply Chain Officer, joined the team in May, and that the pilot of our unified IT system is on track. We are also pleased to report that we already have agreements to dispose of a quarter of the B&Q stores earmarked for closure. We look forward to sharing more of our plans as the year progresses.”
Kingfisher shares traded 3.1% higher at 9.10am in London as investor cheered result from the company that have been questionable in recent years.
The stock has rallied over 30% from lows seen in November 2014.