Proactive Investors - Cards and gifts retailer Card Factory PLC (LON:CARDC) reported a rise in full-year revenues and profits and said trading so far in the current year has exceeded its expectations.
Underlying profit (EBITDA) totalled £112mln in the year to 31 January 2023, up 28.6% from £85.6mln the year before, as the company raised prices to mitigate against inflationary pressures. Pre-tax profits rose to £52.4mln from £11.1mln.
Revenue increased to £463.4mln from £364.4mln, or by 6.7% on a like-for-like basis, driven by robust performances in store-based sales, its Everyday card ranges and strong Christmas trading.
Store sales rose by 7.6% as shoppers came back to the high street after Covid shutdowns ended.
But the return of customers to stores, combined with Royal Mail (LON:IDSI) strikes during Christmas, hit online sales, with cardfactory.co.uk revenues slumping 18.8%, although they were 86.4% higher on a three-year, pre-pandemic comparative basis.
Describing trading in the first weeks of the current financial year as “encouraging”, Card Factory said both Everyday and Seasonal ranges have performed strongly.
“As we look ahead, we continue to have confidence in our ability to mitigate cost inflation through a combination of productivity initiatives and targeted price actions. This approach, together with our clear growth strategy and compelling value-led proposition, gives us confidence the group will continue to make strategic and financial progress in the year ahead,” the company said.
It added that it will provide details, as part of today’s capital markets strategy update, for plans to grow revenues to around £650mln and margins to 14% in full-year 2027, supported by a £24mln per year capital investment plan over the next three years.
Net debt reduced to £57.2mln at the year-end from £74.2mln 12 months earlier.