JD Sports has maintained its full-year profit guidance, hailing “good strategic progress” during the year as sales edged up.
The sports giant posted a 3.6% increase in total sales to £10.5bn for the 53 weeks to February 3, 2024, while like-for-like and organic sales growth were up 4.2% and 8.4% respectively during the year.
Profit before tax for the 2024 full financial year is expected to fall “in line” with the guidance of between £915m and £935m.
During the year, JD Sports opened 215 new stores and hailed the “very encouraging” launch of its loyalty programme in the UK, which has 800,000 downloads to date.
Like-for-like sales across the UK, Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region also rose. The sportswear giant said it is “comfortable” with its year-end inventory level across the business.
In terms of outlook, JD Sports said trading at the start of the new financial year has so far been “in line with expectations” despite the market “remaining challenging”.
The retailer said it expects a “busy sporting summer, soft comparatives with last year and an improving product pipeline” to boost trading conditions throughout the year.
JD Sports now expects full-year 2025 profit before tax to fall between £900m and £980m on a pre-accounting change basis, while like-for-like and organic sales growth are expected to rise between 1% and 4% and 6% and 9% respectively.
JD Sports chief executive Régis Schultz said: “In our FY24 financial year, we outperformed the sportswear market, reflecting the strength of our business. We achieved like-for-like sales growth of over 4%, organic growth of over 8% and our athleisure fascias achieved organic growth of over 10%.
“We made good strategic progress, opening 215 new JD stores and focusing our effort on developing JD and enhancing earnings per share through taking full control of Iberian Sports Retail Group and Marketing Investment Group. We expect profit before tax for the year to be in line with the guided range given in January.
“Looking ahead, the current trading environment remains challenging due to less product innovation and elevated promotional activity, especially online.
“We anticipate trading conditions will improve as we move through the year, helped by a busy sporting summer and softer comparatives with last year.
“We continue to invest in our people and the infrastructure needed to deliver our long-term growth plan. I am excited about the opportunities for the JD group going forward and our ability to deliver attractive returns to shareholders.”
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