Marks and Spencer (LON:MKS) will announce on Monday which of their stores will be closing, in an effort to restructure its business during a difficult time for the high street.
100 of its stores will be shutting, as disappointing sales and profits at the grocery and retail chain led CEO Steve Rowe to take action. 20 stores have already been closed, causing the loss of 900 jobs, with another 80 set to be announce before its results on Wednesday.
The plan is to cut the amount of floor space dedicated to clothing, one of the biggest drags on performance. Analysts are expecting M&S to report pretax profits of £573 million, down from £614 million in 2017, with clothing and home like-for-like sales are forecast to be down 1.1 percent.
Continued decline could put its position on the FTSE 100 in danger. It has been a blue-chip company since 1984, but may fall into the FTSE 250 in a reshuffle later this week.
Marks and Spencer (LON:MKS) shares are currently trading up 1.51 percent on the news, at 296.10 (0844GMT).
