Published by Insider Media
RESULTS SURGE AT HALFORDS
Revenue and pre-tax profits have surged at motoring and cycling products group Halfords during the first half of its 2022 financial year.
The listed company has posted a revenue of £694.8m for the 26 weeks to 1 October 2021, up from £638.9m in the same period of last year.
Pre-tax profits went from £55.4m to £64.3m.
Chief executive Graham Stapleton said: "We are delighted to have delivered a strong H1 performance, driven by market share gains in motoring products, garages and our mobile services business, which now account for more than two thirds of our revenue.
"We also continued to see a significant contribution from areas of strategic focus, with revenue from group services, online and B2B, all growing by more than 75 per cent on a two-year basis.
"In cycling, demand levels remain good, and we are pleased with the current availability of kids bikes and e-bikes as we head into the Christmas trading period. We have carried good sales momentum into H2 across our business, supported by the easing of supply chain disruption. This has enabled us to increase our FY22 underlying profit before tax guidance to between £80m and £90m.
"We are seeing significant growth in the number of customers choosing electric forms of transport, and we continue to have a market-leading position in the servicing and repair of electric vehicles.
"Sales of e-bikes, e-scooters and accessories grew by more than 140 per cent on two years ago, and servicing for electric cars in our garages was up 120 per cent year-on-year. We have already invested in the training of more than 1,300 electric technicians and are on track to train 2,000 by the end of FY22, equating to more than two per store or garage. This number will double next year.
"There is good momentum in our existing business, the strategically important area of motoring services continues to grow strongly, and our recent acquisitions are all performing well. As a result, despite the challenging trading environment, I am very excited about our future growth prospects."