5th Jul 2018 08:43
LONDON (Alliance News) - Superdry PLC on Thursday declared a special dividend for its recently ended financial year, despite profit slipping on increased expenses.
The clothing company reported pretax profit of GBP65.3 million for the year ended April 28, down from GBP84.8 million made a year ago. Adjusted pretax profit grew by 12% to GBP97.0 million from GBP87.0 million.
Selling, general & administrative costs jumped year-on-year to GBP429.4 million from GBP375.4 million.
Revenue rose by 16% to GBP872.0 million from GBP752.0 million led by improvement in Wholesale and E-commerce divisions.
Retail revenue grew 9.2% during the year to GBP548.6 million from GBP502.5 million, boosted by E-commerce performance. The company said it completed next generation store refit programme, which affected 11 sites in the year, resulting in a 6.8% rise in sales.
Wholesale revenue came in 30% higher year-on-year at GBP323.4 million compared to GBP249.5 million. Superdry said the growth was in part driven by the opening of 75 new franchise stores across 33 different countries. In Wholesale division, continental Europe remains key growth market with revenues up 27% to EUR200.1 million.
The company noted that Womenswear remains its most significant opportunity, contributing 36% to the total revenue.
Superdry added 125,000 square feet of retail space in the period, taking the total number of stores owned to 246 from 220. The company also increased the number of franchised & licensed stores to 412 from 335 the year ago.
The FTSE 250-listed firm declared annual dividend of 31.20 pence per share, up 11%. Superdry said it will also pay a special dividend of 25.00p as a result of continued strong cash generation. The prior year, special dividend totalled 20.00p.
Looking ahead, the company said it intends to continue investments in revenue-driving technology to take further advantage of the consumer trend towards digital shopping. For financial 2019, Superdry expects to drive profitability by growth in its Wholesale and E-commerce channels.
"Whilst the consumer environment continues to be challenging, the board remain confident that Superdry is a uniquely advantaged, highly cash-generative business that will continue to deliver sustainable growth for our investors," said Chief Executive Euan Sutherland.
Shares in Superdry were flat early on Thursday at 1,169.00 pence each.
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