Clothing and homewares giant Next (NXT) appears to be doing no wrong at the start of the year.

The retailer raised its pre-tax profit guidance for the year ending 27 January 2024 after benefiting from strong Christmas sales.

The FTSE 100 shares are testing all-time highs after bumping up its earning guidance by £20 million to £905 million against its most recent forecast of £885 million and from its original target of £795 million set at the start of this financial year.

This raised guidance spells good news for shareholders who regularly get rewarded with ordinary dividends and buybacks when the going is good.

Over the past year Next shares are up 31% to sit at the £84.84 mark.

‘Next’s core proposition is clearly resonating with the UK consumer and is being augmented by intelligent acquisitions of brands like Fat Face,’ says Charlie Huggins, manager of the quality shares portfolio at the Wealth Club.

The only ‘fly in the ointment’ for Next could be supply chain issues stemming from difficulties in the Red Sea and the tricky economic backdrop in the UK.

But it is easy to see why Shore Capital analyst Clive Black would observe that: ‘Next is widely regarded as a well-managed business.’

‹ Previous2024-01-11Next ›