30th Apr 2014 10:58
LONDON (Alliance News) - British brewer and restaurant owner Greene King PLC Wednesday said it expects to meet market expectations for the full year, supported by good like-for-like sales growth in both its retail and brewing businesses.
Greene King currently operates around 2,200 pubs, restaurants and hotels across the UK, of which around 1,000 are in its fastest growing retail business, which includes brands Hungry Horse, Old English Inns, Loch Fyne Seafood & Grill and Eating Inn.
In a pre-close trading statement, ahead of its full results on July 3 for its 53 week trading period, Greene King said that retail sales are up 4.1% on a like-for-like basis for the 52 weeks to April 27, and up 4.8% in the last 16 weeks, boosted by events such as Valentine's Day, Mothering Sunday and Easter, as more customers ate and drank at its pubs and restaurants.
"On Mother's Day, we served a single day record of 262,000 food covers with like-for-like sales growth of 17%. Farmhouse Inns performed particularly well with average sales per site of GBP14,400 and three sites delivering over GBP16,000," the company said.
Food like-for-like sales were up 5% in the 52 week period, while drink sales were up 3.2% and hotel room sales were up 6.8% on a like-for-like basis.
"We expect to meet the market's full-year expectations for profit, cashflow and the balance sheet, with further improvement in our [return on capital employed] and a further reduction in leverage," said Chief Executive Rooney Anand in a statement.
The group also said it remains cautiously optimistic for the year ahead.
"Looking ahead, we see the UK's economic outlook improving...customers though, are still spending carefully," Anand added.
Greene King said it now expects its retail margin to be slightly ahead of last year. It also said its retail site expansion remains on track, and expects to have added 45 new retail sites by the end of the year, taking retail to 1,032 sites, with Hungry Horse reaching 232 sites by the year-end.
The group said its brewing business, which includes its core brands Greene King IPA, Old Speckled Hen, Abbot Ale and Belhaven Best, continues to improve its market share, with volumes up 4.6% in the 52 week period. It said that volumes continue to be boosted by a strong performance by its premier ale brand Old Speckled Hen, which recorded volume growth of 13%.
Greene King shares were down 1.4% at 889.50 pence before midday Wednesday.
By Rowena Harris-Doughty; [email protected]; @rharrisdoughty
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