Morrisons posts full-year results next Thursday and profits are expected to come in at about £630m.

The grocer has had a good year, evidenced most recently when it delivered the strongest Christmas sales performance of any of the quoted food groups.

However, there was also disappointment that the Christmas trading statement did not prompt upgrades to profit forecasts. Analysts fretted over whether promotions had hit margins and the retailer’s share price has been flat over the past three months.

TNS data released on Tuesday, covering the 12 weeks to February 22, indicated Morrisons still has momentum. The retailer’s market share advanced from 11.6 per cent to 11.8 per cent.

Broker Bernstein said: “Our forecasts credit Morrisons with improving sales densities faster than Tesco and Sainsbury’s. However, the differences in sales densities growth rates will be largely offset by differences in space growth rates.”

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