Retailers will be in focus on Wednesday as two blue chip firms at the opposite ends of the shopping spectrum provide updates for investors.
Luxury goods firm Burberry Group PLC (LON:BRBY) should report improving second-half sales growth, according to Deutsche Bank, having delivered 4% underlying retail sales growth in the third quarter as its long-term growth strategy starts to deliver early results.
In a preview, the German bank's analysts forecast that the FTSE 100-listed group should see its overall comparable store retail sales growth accelerate to +6% for the second-half.
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They pointed out: “Industry data has been improving since the middle of 2016, driven by improving trends in Greater China and more modest improvements in Europe.”
The analysts noted that the strong sales performance, announced last week, by market leader LVMH of France increases the upside risk for Burberry, which recently saw Belgium's richest man - activist investor Albert Frere - take a 3% stake in the British firm via his Groupe Bruxelles Lambert vehicle.
Primark eyed ...
Meanwhile, at the other end of the retail market, Associated British Foods plc (LON:ABF), the conglomerate which owns high street discount clothing retailer Primark as well as food products such as Twining’s tea and Silver Spoon sugar is expected to deliver strong first-half results.
In a pre-close update at the end of February, ABF said all its divisions had made ‘excellent progress’ and reiterated its full-year guidance for underlying earnings (EBITDA) although a positive currency boost for overseas profits in the first-half, will be reduced in the second-half.
In a preview, analysts at HSBC said that, assuming H1 accounts for around 80% of the uplift in full year profits, it expects ABF to report EBITDA of about £620mln, pretax profit of £600mln, and earnings per share of 58.4p, which would be growth of 28%.
They expect Primark to deliver first-half sales growth of +11% on a constant currency basis and +21% on a reported basis, with positive forex factors benefitting the around 50% of sales generated outside the UK.
Significant events expected on Wednesday 19 April:
Trading Statements: Burberry Group PLC (LON:BRBY), Bunzl PLC (LON:BNZL); Henderson Group PLC (LON:HGG), RELX PLC (LON:REL); Rio Tinto PLC (LON:RIO); Rentokil Initial PLC (LON:RTO); Segro PLC (LON:SGRO)
Interims: Associated British Foods PLC (LON:ABF), Fenner PLC (LON:FENR)
Finals: e-Therapeutics PLC (LON:ETX)
AGMs/EGMs: Greggs PLC (LON:GRG); Bunzl PLC (LON:BNZL)