Ian Pollard – Persimmon – Strong Growth As Sales Decline

NEXT plc NXT first quarter trading to the 27th April was saved only  by online sales which rose by 11% and are forecast to continue to grow at the same rate for the remainder of the year. Full price retail sales for the quarter fell by 3.6%. The picture for the remainder of the year […]

Ian Pollard – NEXT Retail’s Big Slide Over Christmas And Full Year

Next plc NXT Full price sales for the Christmas trading period (between Sunday 28 October and Saturday 29 December) rose by 1.5%. Whilst November sales were disappointing this was made up for by strong sales in the three weeks before Christmas and a good half-term holiday week at the end of October. Full price online […]

Ian Pollard: Fastjet On The Brink

Fastjet plc FJET admits that it has not received the additional funding which it needed by the end of October if it was to continue operating, It has however been able to continue operating beyond that deadline due to some improvement in trading and cash generation. This has allowed it further time to continue discussions […]

Ian Pollard – Next #NXT succumbs to High St woes

NEXT NXT colder weather and a big rise in online sales helped Next to beat expectations for full price sales in the 54 days between 1st November and the 24th December, with a rise of 1.5% as against an expected fall of -0.3%. Within that figure however, retail sales were a disaster with a fall […]

450,000 British Companies Financially Distressed

Begbies Traynor BEG  announces doom and gloom for many British companies with 450,000 of them suffering from signs of financial distress, even before the effects are felt of any interest rate rise on Thursday. The number has risen by 27% from a year ago and 250,000 have become “zombie” companies with no net worth and […]

NEXT- Another Special Dividend As Decline Continues

NEXT plc NXT does not expect any recovery during the remainder of the current financial year despite second quarter full price sales having risen by 0.7% compared to the first quarter when they were down 3%. Retail sales for the half year to 29th July were down by 7.4% whereas Directory sales rose by 11.4% […]

Next Celebrates Falling Profits With a Special Dividend

Next NXT Celebrates its weak trading performance by announcing a special dividend of 45p per share to be paid on the 1st August. Total sales for the 13 weeks to to 29th April fell by 3% as mayhem on the high street continued. On a like for like basis, new space which added 1.6% to […]

Fenner In Recovery Mode

Fenner FENR now expects results for the current year will be comfortably ahead of previous expectations as a result of gains in market share and refocusing of the businesses. These factors have helped to create an improving trend in order intake and a stronger market position in the US. Australia is doing well and results […]

Next Finds Horror On The High Street

Next NXT issues a stark warning about current profits and the level of both this years and next years sales. It failed to live up to its own expectations for 4th quarter sales in the face of what it describes as exceptional levels of uncertainty. Between the 1st November and 24th December sales fell by […]