Halfords CEO resigns
Car parts and bicycle retailer Halfords Group said it was on track to deliver annual profits in line with expectations despite a slowdown in sales growth.
Halfords, which sells items such as spark plugs, engine oil and car radio from 440 stores, also said on Thursday that Chief Executive Ian McLeod had resigned having accepted a position with a large retailer based in Australia.
McLeod will leave the company on February 29 and a search for a successor is underway.
Like-for-like sales were up 2 percent in the 17 weeks since the end of the first half, while sales for the year so far, for the 43 weeks to January 25, had increased by 4.1 percent. That was down from growth of 5.5 percent in the first half.
"Following a challenging autumn, like-for-like sales have strengthened, giving us confidence in our prospects for the rest of the financial year and we remain well placed to deliver full year profit in line with expectations," McLeod said.
Gross profit was in line with its expectations and Halfords said it was on track to deliver a full year gross margin in line with previous guidance.
Halfords said it had completed its initial 50 million pounds shares buyback ahead of schedule on January 31. The company intends to continue to optimise its balance sheet and use the share buyback tool.
Shares in Halfords had closed at 279.25 pence on Wednesday, valuing the company at around 619.3 million pounds.
(Reporting by Mike Elliott; Editing by Louise Ireland)
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