Next raises profit guidance after strong quarter
Next has raised its full year guidance for sales and profits after Next brand sales rose by 10.7% in its second quarter.
In the quarter ending 26 July, retail sales rose by 6.4%. Directory sales, which includes online, climbed by 18.8%.
In the 26 weeks to 26 July, Next brand sales grew by 10.7%, of which 2.4% came from the opening of profitable new space.
Next said sales are currently ahead of the 5.5% to 9.5% full year growth guidance it gave in April, which has led it to raise its estimates for the full year. The company now predicts growth of between 7% and 10%.
In a trading statement Next said: “It might appear overly cautious to forecast a full year sales range which is below our current rate of growth.
“However, last year’s first two quarters were hampered by a particularly cold Spring and Easter which presented a soft comparison.
“This pattern makes estimating second half sales particularly difficult so our guidance for the next six months is for growth of between 4% and 10%.”
Next is also raising its profit guidance by £25 million and now forecasts pre-tax profits to be between £775 million and £815 million for the full year.
