WH Smith PLC (LSE:SMWH) is scheduled to release a pre-close trading statement on Wednesday with plenty for investors to look forward to if its last update is anything to go by as its focus on airport locations has provided a boost as international travel returned in almost full swing after the pandemic.
In a July update, the retailer, whose shares are down 8% in the year to date, said it expected full-year revenues to be at the top end of expectations, having surged 107% ahead of 2019 in the first three quarters of the year, led by the UK and US.
Additionally, it guided to further expected growth across the global travel retail market, with more than 125 of its stores yet to reopen after previous pandemic restrictions, of which 28 were at airports.
As well as giving an update on how many stores are now open, Wednesday’s update should also provide clarity on the impact the summer of airport chaos has had on this key part of its business.
Airports across the UK have had to deal with a raft of last-minute cancellations, although with many of these at the last minute, it remains to be seen exactly how much of an impact this had on footfall in the famously-badly-carpeted stores.
Analysts at Barclays also noted that the group's recently announced pension scheme buy-in, which insures all liabilities to pay all future defined pensions, has a roughly £3mln annual cash flow benefit.
This is a result of WH Smith having to no longer make additional future contributions to the trust, which frees up cash, although the group isn’t expected to reap the benefits of this until the next financial year.