Next (NXT)

Sector:

Retailers

Index:

FTSE 100

9,212.00p
   
  • Change Today:
      24.00p
  • 52 Week High: 9,288.00
  • 52 Week Low: 6,346.00
  • Currency: UK Pounds
  • Shares Issued: 127.13m
  • Volume: 2,617
  • Market Cap: £11,711m
  • RiskGrade: 153

Next lifts annual guidance as Q2 sales crush forecasts

By Frank Prenesti

Date: Wednesday 21 Jul 2021

LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - UK fashion retailer Next on Wednesday lifted full-year profits guidance after second quarter full price sales smashed expectations.
In an unscheduled trading update, the company said it now expected annual pre-tax profits of £750m, up £30m from previous forecasts and towards the top end of estimates.

Total full-price sales rose 18% in the three months to July 17 after the lifting of Covid restrictions and people returned to physical stores. The company, which had assumed sales would rise by around 3%.

Online sales rose 44% year on year, but were down from 65% in the previous quarter as customers returned to physical stores after the easing of restrictions.

Next added that it was also repaying £29m in business rates relief after consultation with major shareholders.

Soaring sales were attributed to a combination of pent-up demand for adult clothing, the onset of warm weather at the end of May and start of June, and an increase in spending from fewer holidays abroad and consumers savings acquired in lockdown.

Next, which has a track record of under-promising and overdelivering, said it expected second-half sales sales for the year to January 2022 to rise by 6% rather than 3%.

Next said surplus cash for the year was forecast to be £240m, which it planned to give to shareholders via special dividends, the first of which would be paid in September.

AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould noted that Next's physical store sales had 'only' seen a 6% dip in its second quarter to 17 July versus 2019.

"That is a positive result in the context of physical retail trends and Next is likely to have benefited from the sunny period enticing people out of the house."

"We've heard from many retailers in recent years how business is shifting online, and the high street or retail park stores are becoming a sideshow. Next is managing to keep its stores more relevant by using them for a combination of click and collect, customer services and as a showcase for products.

"Before the pandemic, Next's online customers collected nearly half of their orders from stores and more than 80% of returns went back to a physical store rather than in the post. To make sure staff are kept busy, Next is now experimenting with store staff handling some work that would normally go through a contact centre. That's a clever move and keeps the business running efficiently.

"Next is giving customers a reason to keep visiting its stores and in doing so it has an opportunity to try and sell them more items. Once the summer period is over, one might expect Next to try and push more formalwear in anticipation of more people returning to the office to work, either on a full or part-time basis."





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Note 1: Prices and trades are provided by Digital Look Corporate Solutions and are delayed by at least 15 minutes.

Note 2: RiskGrade figures are provided by RiskMetrics.

 

Next Market Data

Currency UK Pounds
Share Price 9,212.00p
Change Today 24.00p
% Change 0.26 %
52 Week High 9,288.00
52 Week Low 6,346.00
Volume 2,617
Shares Issued 127.13m
Market Cap £11,711m
RiskGrade 153

Next Star Ratings

Compare performance with the sector and the market.
more star ratings
Key: vs Market vs Sector
Value
76.26% below the market average76.26% below the market average76.26% below the market average76.26% below the market average76.26% below the market average
78.95% below the sector average78.95% below the sector average78.95% below the sector average78.95% below the sector average78.95% below the sector average
Price Trend
89.60% above the market average89.60% above the market average89.60% above the market average89.60% above the market average89.60% above the market average
100.00% above the sector average100.00% above the sector average100.00% above the sector average100.00% above the sector average100.00% above the sector average
Income
19.7% below the market average19.7% below the market average19.7% below the market average19.7% below the market average19.7% below the market average
44.44% below the sector average44.44% below the sector average44.44% below the sector average44.44% below the sector average44.44% below the sector average
Growth
28.23% above the market average28.23% above the market average28.23% above the market average28.23% above the market average28.23% above the market average
65.00% above the sector average65.00% above the sector average65.00% above the sector average65.00% above the sector average65.00% above the sector average

What The Brokers Say

Strong Buy 2
Buy 4
Neutral 13
Sell 1
Strong Sell 1
Total 21
neutral
Broker recommendations should not be taken as investment advice, and are provided by the authorised brokers listed on this page.

Next Dividends

  Latest Previous
  Final Interim
Ex-Div 04-Jul-24 07-Dec-23
Paid 01-Aug-24 03-Jan-24
Amount 141.00p 66.00p

Trades for 28-Mar-2024

Time Volume / Share Price
08:14 31 @ 9,212.00p
08:14 40 @ 9,212.00p
08:14 30 @ 9,214.00p
08:14 6 @ 9,214.00p
08:14 1 @ 9,216.00p

Next Key Personnel

CEO Wolfson Aspley Guise
Finance Director Amanda James
Chair Michael J Roney

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