Veterinary and pet product business, Pets at Home (LON:PETS), released a trading statement on Tuesday outlining it figures for its third-quarter. For the 12 weeks to the 3rd January, revenue increase has put the company in a strong position to meet its annual profit guidance. Shares in the company began to rise during early Tuesday trading.
Group revenue grew 6.3%, compared to the same period a year earlier, up to £237.2 million. For its retail division, revenue was up 5.5% to £213.4 million. Additionally, its vet group revenue increased 13.6% to £23.8 million.
Group like-for-like revenue grew 5.1%. Retail like-for-like revenue grew 4.7% whilst vet group like-for-like revenue increased by 9.1%.
Pets at Home has said that it may consider increasing its inventory, holding by up to £8 million, in light of the uncertainty surrounding Brexit.
These results are an initial sign of recovery compared to the 81% crash in profits during the first half of the company’s financial year. The 81% drop meant that profit before tax fell from £40.8 million a year earlier to just £8 million. Likewise, its full-year results for its previous financial year were also disappointing, with a 17% fall in pre-tax profits.
The company still expects to produce an annual pre-tax profit between £80 million – £85 million.
Peter Pritchard, Croup Chief Executive Officer, commented on the results:
“Momentum in Retail accelerated over the festive period, culminating in the biggest trading day of our entire history on the Saturday before Christmas. Our omnichannel business delivered exceptional performance, benefitting from investments made earlier in the year, including a new mobile website. This resulted in 4.7% like-for-like growth in Retail, an impressive 11% growth on a two year basis. In such a challenging climate, this performance was only made possible through the hard work of our colleagues across the business.”
“We saw good customer revenue growth across our entire Vet Group. In November, we reiterated the big opportunity to accelerate the maturity of our vet practices, but this needs to be achieved in a more sustainable way. As such, I am particularly pleased with how the recalibration of the Vet Group is taking shape; the engagement from JVPs has been positive and we have made good progress in our discussions with buyback practices.”
“We also celebrated another milestone as we reached £10m raised for national and local animal charities through our VIP loyalty club since its launch in 2012, another fantastic achievement.”
“We are working closely across the Group to maximise our assets and data as a pet care business, delivering initiatives that are resulting in an even better experience for customers. With the Executive Team appointments now complete, I know that we enter 2019 with growing momentum and we are well placed to deliver on our plans and commitments.”
At 08:28 GMT Tuesday, shares in Pets at Home Group plc (LON:PETS) were trading at +5.99%.