Archived article
Please note that tax, investment, pension and ISA rules can change and the information and any views contained in this article may now be inaccurate.
Book and convenience retailer WH Smith said COVID-19 has had a 'significant impact' on current trading as the vast majority of its stores at airports and railway stations remain closed, with travel revenue down 91% in April.
It saw an 85% fall in group total revenue in April on the same period last year and reported that high street revenue declined 74% in the same month.
WH Smith's online businesses have 'performed strongly', particularly in books where it has seen a 400% increase in sales during the past month.
In its interim results for the six months to 29 February 2020, the retailer reported that group revenue was up 7% at £747m, with like-for-like revenue down 1%, while travel revenue increased 19% and was up 2% on a like-for-like basis.
The company cited strong profit growth in travel during the first half of the year, with trading profit up 11% to £49m.
It announced high street trading profit of £44m, down from £48m in 2019, and headline pre-tax profit of £80m, compared to £81m in the previous year.
WH Smith also announced that the board will not be making an interim dividend payment in the current financial year.
Group chief executive Carl Cowling said: 'There was very little impact of Covid-19 on our first half results, however inevitably the performance in the second half will be very different.'
He added: 'Since March, we have seen a significant impact on our business as a result of Covid-19, with the majority of our stores closed around the world.
'We were fast to react to the situation and issued new equity via a placing, raising c.£162m on 6 April 2020. We also secured an additional £120m of bank funding.'
At 8:26am: (LON:SMWH) Wh Smith PLC share price was -0.25p at 916.25p