LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - B&Q owner Kingfisher reported a strong rise in third quarter sales driven by online demand as consumers spent the coronavirus lockdown improving their homes.
The company on Thursday said total like-for-like sales for the three months to October 31 rose 17.4% to £3.46bn. Online sales soared 153% and now represented 17% of total group sales compared with 8% last year.

"While the strength of our Q3 performance was reassuring, uncertainty over COVID-19 and the impact of temporary lockdown restrictions in most of our markets continue to limit our near-term visibility," the company said in a trading update.

Like-for-like sales were up 12.6% in the fourth quarter to November 14, largely reflecting the impact of more recent lockdown measures.

Kingfisher also forecast that full year adjusted pre-tax profit would include £175m in temporary cost savings.

The company, which also runs Screwfix in the UK along with Castorama and Brico Depot in France, said all of its stores remain open to customers despite lockdown measures, due to their essential status.

UK sales rose 21.5% during the period, with B&Q posting 23.9% revenue growth as it saw particularly strong sales for outdoor products. Meanwhile, Screwfix delivered 17.4% growth as it continued to have solid sales with trade customers.

"Our growth was supported by strong market demand, as consumers spent more time in their homes and focused on improving them," said Kingfisher chief executive Thierry Garnier.

"Overall, we believe that the renewed focus on homes is supportive for our markets. "Furthermore, we are confident that the strategic and operational actions we have taken so far are helping us to build a strong foundation for long-term growth."

Interactive investor analyst Richard Hunter said Kingfisher shares have "had an interesting year" as demotion from the FTSE100 in March was immediately reversed with promoition to the premier index in June.

"Since the March low, the shares have spiked by 141% and are now ahead by 38% in the year to date," he said.

"Indeed, over the last year, the outperformance of the share price is significant, with a rise of 43% comparing to a decline of 13% for the wider FTSE100. Quite apart from the challenges which may be yet to come, the strong performance has led to the question of whether the shares are now up with events, as evidenced by some initial profit taking in early trade, such that the market consensus of the shares remains at a 'hold'."

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