Tesco-owned garden centre chain Dobbies has posted a mixed set of preliminary results for the year to October 31, as it unveiled its intention to raise £150 million through the issue of new shares.
The chain posted pre-tax profits down 11.7 per cent to£3.8 million, which was “affected by a£3.1 million charge for corporate transaction fees, offset by capital gain on the sale of a non-trading store and the movement on the fair value of financial instruments”, the retailer said in a statement.
For the year to October 31, Dobbies reported total sales up 21.4 per cent to£83.5 million, with like-for-like sales up 1.4 per cent.
However, Dobbies’ sales jumped 13.4 per cent and like-for-likes rose 3.1 per cent for the four months from November to February.
Dobbies chief executive James Barnes said: “The performance of our established stores continues to improve, with sales and operating margins ahead of last year, helped by improving gross margins and good cost controls. However, this year’s financial results are distorted by exceptional items and accounting standard changes.”
Dobbies said it intends to raise about£150 million (before expenses) through the issue of up to 12.5 million new ordinary shares at£12 a share, by means of an open offer on a 6-for-5 basis. Grocery giant Tesco acquired Dobbies last year and owns 65 per cent of the retailer.
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