Retailer Woolworths yesterday advised that its headline earnings for the 52 weeks ended June 25, 2023, were now likely to rise by up to 35%.
The shares leapt 2% on the news, but moderated later and by 12.35pm were trading down 0.97% at R76.21 on the JSE.
Shareholders were referred to the announcement released on the Stock Exchange News Service on July 28, wherein the retailer advised that earnings per share (EPS), headline EPS (Heps) and adjusted diluted Heps (adHeps) for the total group, which included a nine-month contribution from David Jones in the current year, versus a full 12-month contribution in the prior year was expected to be 20% higher than that reported for the prior year.
Woolworths disposed of its David Jones operations on March 27, being the end of the third quarter of the Group’s 2023 financial year. David Jones will be reported as a discontinued operation in the group’s full-year results.
In the 52 weeks ended June 25, 2023 Woolworths now advised that EPS, Heps and adHeps were expected to rise with EPS up between 30% to 40% to between 503.6 to 542.4 cents a share. Heps were likely to be up between 25% to 35% to between 498.6 to 538.5 cents a share, while adHEPS were likely to rise by between 10% to 20% to between 396.2 to 432.2 cents a share.
BUSINESS REPORT