LONDON, March 24 (Reuters) - European home improvement retailer Kingfisher on Tuesday reported a 6% rise in annual profit, with a resilient performance in the UK offsetting softer markets in France
Home improvement retailer Kingfisher says resilient UK lifts profit
Kingfisher Reports Annual Profit Growth Amid Mixed Market Conditions
By James Davey
LONDON, March 24 (Reuters) - European home improvement retailer Kingfisher reported a 6% rise in annual profit on Tuesday, with a resilient performance in the UK offsetting softer markets in France and Poland.
The FTSE 100 listed group, which trades as B&Q and Screwfix in the UK and Castorama and Brico Depot in France and other markets, forecast a further rise in profit in 2026/27.
Impact of Global Events on Kingfisher's Business
Consumer Behaviour and Geopolitical Tensions
CEO Thierry Garnier said Kingfisher had so far not seen any direct impact on consumer behaviour from the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, noting the business is skewed to repair and maintenance rather than discretionary spending.
Cost Base and Operational Resilience
Finance chief Bhavesh Mistry also pointed to the limited impact of the conflict on the group's cost base, saying that energy costs equalled less than 1% of total sales and the company was well hedged for the year ahead.
On freight, he said that while about 20% of Kingfisher's goods on a cost basis were sourced from Asia they were locked into annual contracts.
Financial Performance Overview
Regional Sales Performance
UK and Ireland
Kingfisher made an adjusted pretax profit for the year to January 31, 2026, in line with its guidance of 560 million pounds ($751.7 million). Total sales rose 1.3% to 12.9 billion pounds.
Like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland rose 3.3%, but were down 2.2% in France and down 1.1% in Poland.
France and Poland
For the 2026/27 year, Kingfisher forecast profit in a range of 565 million pounds to 625 million pounds.
Prior to Tuesday's update, analysts were on average forecasting 596 million pounds.
Strategic Priorities and Shareholder Returns
"With a mixed consumer environment across our markets, we continue to focus on delivering our strategic priorities, maintaining cost discipline and driving shareholder returns," Garnier said.
Growth in Trade and E-commerce
He highlighted a 23% increase in sales to the building trade, excluding Screwfix, and a 20% increase in e-commerce sales, excluding Screwfix. E-commerce sales were 21% of total sales.
Share Buyback Programme
Kingfisher, whose shares are down 5% so far this year, said it would start a new 300 million pound share buyback programme, having completed a 300 million pound programme in 2025/26.
($1 = 0.7448 pounds)
(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Sarah Young and Tomasz Janowski)
