Troubled supermarket Morrisons revealed its fourth consecutive quarter of growth on Thursday, sending shares up over 2 percent.
Like-for-like sales rose 1.6 percent in the three months to 30th October. Total sales group sales excluding fuel are still down 1.2 percent on the year, with restructuring – including supermarket closures and the exit of M local – continuing to have an effect.
Halloween turnover was the group’s “biggest ever”, up 20 percent on last year and the supermarket moves its focus to holiday merchandise. The third quarter also saw Morrisons take home several awards, including In-store Bakery Retailer of the Year at the Baking Industry Awards and National Café Chain of the Year at the Café Quality Food Awards.
The positive figures are further evidence that the turnaround plan of chief executive David Potts’, who took over the company last year following the removal of former boss Dalton Philips, may be making progress. Potts commented:
“This year’s Halloween was our biggest ever, with our great value offer proving popular with customers. Our financial position is strong, and we are committed to further strengthening our balance sheet and lowering debt. Our net debt target remains c.£1.2 billion by year end.
“Our like-for-like sales have now been positive for a year, which is thanks to the hard work and dedication of the whole Morrisons team. There is a lot more we plan to do. We will keep investing in becoming more competitive and improving the shopping trip, and I am confident we will serve our customers even better during the important trading period ahead.”
Morrisons (LON:MRW) shares have steadily risen on the London market this morning, currently trading up 2.53 percent at 226.90 (1014GMT).