Kingfisher shares sank on Tuesday after the DIY specialist announced falling sales and profit amid difficult trading conditions.

Despite increasing market share, Kingfisher’s sales fell 1.5% in the year to January 2025 and operating profit fell 29%.

The results were a real kick in the teeth for investors, and shares were down over 13% at the time of writing.

“Kingfisher is stuck in reverse gear. The B&Q owner is one of the most shorted stocks on the UK market as hedge funds bet that its problems can’t be fixed in the current fragile retail environment. They have been right so far, with the shares slumping even further on its latest set of results,” Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

Thierry Garnier, Chief Executive Officer of Kingfisher, used the first line of his comment on results to highlight market share growth in all six of their key regions. Although this shows Kingfisher are doing a good job of increasing their prominence in the industry, the fact is that the industry they operate in is facing extreme pressure.

“The B&Q and owner has been turning the screw on its competitors and eked out market share growth in all regions, but it is profit that investors really care about,” said Derren Nathan, head of equity research Hargreaves Lansdown.

“There’s only so long that discounting can be sustained for. France in particular was impacted, with retail profit slumping over 30%, with Poland being the bright spot. However, the UK still dominates and here performance was broadly flat. With higher labour costs around the corner and consumer sentiment under pressure, the Group has come out with conservative guidance for this year’s pre-tax profit in the £480mn-£540mn range, 6% behind forecasts at the mid-point.

Innovative Eyewear Inc. (NASDAQ:LUCY), the developer of smart eyewear under multiple premium brands including Lucyd, Nautica, Eddie Bauer, and Reebok, has announced its financial results for the full year 2024, highlighting substantial revenue growth and margin improvements.

The company reported net revenue of $1,636,440 for the year ended 31 December 2024, representing a 42% increase from $1,152,479 in 2023.

The fourth quarter of 2024 saw revenue reach $690,688 – the company’s highest quarterly figure since inception and a 12% increase compared to the same period in 2023.

This growth was primarily driven by increased unit sales volume following the launch of co-branded collections and the Lucyd Armor safety smart glasses line.

Early sales of the safety glasses appear promising, and investors will be looking forward to the launch of Reebok-branded smart eyewear in Q2 2025. The safety glasses range was released midway through the fourth quarter, so the full quarterly impact of the new range will not be felt until Q1 2025.

The company has materially increased its distribution networks, and its products are now stocked by numerous eyewear outlets and ‘big box’ retailers.

Lucyd smart eyewear is now also available on Walmart.com, Target.com, BestBuy.com, DicksSportingGoods.com, Brookstone.com, and eBay.

“Our 2024 fourth quarter revenue was our best quarter yet, and we have continued the trend of outperforming sales each quarter on a year-over-year basis, for the last 18 months,” said Harrison Gross, CEO of Innovative Eyewear Inc.

“As we look ahead to 2025, we believe we are well positioned to build on our momentum and significantly grow both our total revenues and our market share. I am particularly excited about the potential of our upcoming Reebok® product lines which we will be launching in 2025 coupled with the continued significant traction of the Lucyd Armor^TM smart safety glasses.”

Gross profit margins improved significantly to 13% in 2024, compared with a negative 10% in 2023. This 23 percentage point improvement was largely attributable to reduced costs for frames and lenses, which contributed 13 and 8 percentage points, respectively, to the margin enhancement.

Innovative Eyewear has invested heavily in marketing, which is reflected in an overall loss for the year. That said, increased sales in Q4 put the company on an upward trajectory towards breakeven, should sales growth momentum continue. The upcoming quarters could prove particularly interesting for the Tekcapital portfolio company.

The company ended 2024 with $2,628,987 in cash and cash equivalents, down from $4,287,447 a year earlier.

During the fourth quarter, Innovative Eyewear achieved several milestones, including the launch of the first ANSI-certified smart safety glasses for all-day wear, expansion to over 400 optical stores, and a new retail partnership with Nebraska Furniture Mart.

The FTSE 100 jumped on the tailcoats of US equities on Tuesday after a tech rebound drove a sharp increase in the S&P 500 and Dow Jones overnight.

London’s leading index was 0.7% higher at the time of writing. The rally was broad with around 80% of the FTSE 100’s constituents trading in positive territory.

“There is nothing better than a solid day on Wall Street to lift investor sentiment across the pond,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

“A 2.3% gain in the Nasdaq and 1.8% advance in the S&P 500 yesterday created the right kind of backdrop to put European markets on the front foot. All the major indices in Europe moved higher on Tuesday.”

US technology shares were the driving force behind yesterday’s rally, as beaten-down names such as Tesla, Palantir, and AMD caught the attention of bargain hunters.

London’s lack of mega-cap technology shares meant that if the FTSE 100 was to emulate Wall Street’s strength, it would have to rely on similarly cyclical sectors.

Housebuilders, property, and energy stocks took on the mantle.

Shell added a significant number of points to the index after it announced a strategy ‘to become simpler, more resilient and more competitive’.

The strategy was received well by investors and shares rose 2% on Tuesday.

“In a short statement ahead of its capital markets day, oil & gas giant Shell revealed that it’s upping its shareholder distribution of operating cash flows from the 30-40% range through the cycle up to 40-50%,” said Derren Nathan, head of equity research Hargreaves Lansdown.

“Dividend growth of 4% per year is being targeted but it’s share buybacks that will be the focus of increased payouts. And it’s also trying to maximise the cash generation that drives shareholder distributions.”

Housebuilders and property shares played a large part in the FTSE 100’s rally, with investors picking up shares such as Persimmon, Segro, and Taylor Wimpey near multi-year lows.

“Property-related shares were also in demand, including Segro at the top of the FTSE risers’ list and many housebuilders looking strong. Segro announced a data centre joint venture, giving investors a different spin on the AI theme,” Russ Mould explained.

Kingfisher was the FTSE 100’s top faller after announcing falling sales for the year to January 2025. Shares were 14% lower at the time of writing.

Premium mixer company Fevertree Drinks plc has reported a significant improvement in profitability in 2024 as revenue growth in the US and improved margins helped boost the bottom line.

Once a darling of UK small-cap investors, Fevertree suffered a period of slow and falling sales, which saw shares fall from grace in 2021, never to recover.

Today’s 7% jump in shares would suggest investors are mildly optimistic things could be about the improve for the tonic water specialist.

The London-listed firm saw its Fever-Tree brand revenue growth accelerate to 7% in the second half of the year, delivering 4% growth for the full year on a constant currency basis. 

This was driven primarily by the company’s performance in the United States, where revenue grew by 12%.

Fevertree reported a substantial 540 basis point improvement in gross margin, which contributed to a 66% increase in Adjusted EBITDA to £50.7 million, in line with market expectations. The company’s EBITDA margin rose by 530 basis points to 13.7%.

This is all welcome news for investors.

The company’s strong financial performance has enabled it to recommend a final dividend of 11.12 pence per share, representing a 2% increase year over year. 

In addition, investors will be delighted to see Fevertree has extended its share buyback programme by an additional £29 million, bringing the total to be returned to shareholders over FY25 to £100 million.

US growth 

Cracking America isn’t easy but, despite problems in the UK, Fevertree has successful established a strong presence and the region is now the group’s single largest geography in terms of revenue.

However, in a strategic shift in their approach to the US, Fevertree announced a significant post-year-end development in the long-term strategic partnership with drinks giant Molson Coors on 30 January 2025 who will have exclusive sales, distribution, and production rights for the Fever-Tree brand in the United States.

The partnership aims to leverage Molson Coors’ scale and expertise to accelerate Fever-tree’s growth in the US market, capitalising on opportunities across both alcoholic and non-alcoholic categories.

“In return for handing over a stake in its business, Fevertree’s getting access to Coors’ broad production, distribution and marketing resources,” explained Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown.

“It’s hoped that this will help drive the next leg of growth in the US, which has already become the tonic-maker’s largest market.”

Fevertree recognised £5.0 million in exceptional items relating to the transition to this partnership during the reporting period.

Fevertree’s Outlook

Following the announcement of the strategic partnership with Molson Coors, Fevertree expects to deliver strong Group revenue and EBITDA growth over the medium term. However, the company has cautioned that FY25 will be a transition year for the US business.

Fevertree reaffirmed guidance, stating they are comfortable with consensus expectations of low single-digit Group revenue growth and approximately 12% Group Adjusted EBITDA margin for the coming year.

Investors seemed content with the update, and shares traded at the highest level since October 2024 in early trading.

The FTSE 100 gave up gains on Monday after hopes that President Trump would take a more targeted approach to tariffs lifted sentiment in early trade. However, UK-centric concerns mounted as the session progressed, dragging the index into the red.

Donald Trump’s suggestion that there could be some ‘flexibility’ in reciprocal tariffs marks a step down in Trump’s approach, although tensions around trade still remain.

Nonetheless, signs that Trump may still be using tariffs as a negotiating tactic—albeit taking them further than he did in his first term—buoyed equity bulls on Monday.

The FTSE 100 started the session strongly, but the rally faded as the session progressed. London’s leading index was 0.1% higher at the time of writing, while S&P 500 futures jumped over 1%.

Trump’s change in approach to tariffs would still leave metals in his sights, and copper prices reacted accordingly on Monday, helping provide support for London mining stocks.

“Mining stocks were the key driver for the FTSE 100 as Antofagasta, Anglo American and Glencore topped the leader board thanks to stronger copper prices,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

“The base metal has been on a strong run of late as markets worry about the impact of tariffs, with copper traders racing to snap up supplies in case Trump imposes new levies akin to what’s already happened with aluminium and steel.”

Strength in China-centric stocks was offset by those companies with exposure to the UK as investors prepared for this week’s Spring Statement. Property companies were notably weaker, although the losses were relatively benign.

JD Sports was the top faller after analysts at Deutsche Bank slashed their price target to 85p. JD was 4% lower at 72p at the time of writing.

Polar Capital Technology Trust was among the risers as investors picked the trust’s stock up after a sharp sell-off in line with a pullback in US tech shares. The trust’s top ten holdings include Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, and Broadcom.