Halfords has seen a surge in bike sales during lockdown by 57.1% in the 13 weeks to 3 July as people avoided public transport.
The retailer had a fall in motoring revenues with quarterly sales down by 6.5% overall. Halfords share price tumbled on Tuesday morning by 9.5%.
Underlying pre-tax profit of £55.9m was reported for the 2019-20 financial year in the 12 months to 3 April.
Halfords said their performance during the first three months of the current financial year is “relatively strong” and “better than anticipated.”
chief executive Graham Stapleton said, “Having responded quickly and decisively to cater for the surge in popularity of cycling during lockdown, we are now seeing increased demand for motoring services and products as people start using their cars regularly again, having not done so for the last few months.”
Amy Higginbotham, retail analyst at GlobalData, “Halfords has proved resilient during the coronavirus crisis, unlike many non-food retailers.
She added, “But the retailer expects sales for its current financial year to decline 9.5% and profit before tax to be in the region of -£10m-£0m, in a worst-case scenario.”
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