Marks & Spencer reports on Thursday following a disappointing set of results from fellow high street bellwether Next (LON:NXT) earlier in the week.
Food has been its staple as clothing sales have dipped for 16 out of the last 17 quarters, though there were some signs of progress in the interim statement in November.
Sales were still down but margins held up as M&S stopped discounting as aggressively.
Clothing has also seen management changes and investors will hope for evidence this has led to improved sales as well in this week’s statement.
Graham Spooner, at The Share Centre, said: “The performance of online sales will also be a focus, following reports of a big shift towards that channel on Black Friday in November, as will any comments about prospects for the January sales.”
Elsewhere, housebuilder Persimmon will update the market on its fourth quarter trading.
The company has been benefitting from healthy demand for new homes where it has seen visitor numbers remain high, the average selling price should come closer to £200,000 and legal completions for the year as a whole should not be too far off from increasing by 10%, The Share Centre’s Spooner said.
Significant announcements expected:
Trading update: Signet (LON:SIG), Poundland (LON:PLND), Marks & Spencer (LON:MKS), Persimmon (LON:PSN).
Economic: Eurozone – Economic sentiment, retail sales; US – Jobless claims