BREAKING NEWS: JB Hi Fi Sales Down As The Good Guys Struggle Overall Business Up 4.3% For The Year
Sales at JB Hi Fi are down 1% while The Good Guys are down 12.2% for the period 1 July 2023 to 30 September 2023, the bright note was New Zealand sales are up 1% with the business confident of further growth from their NZ business.
The result is not as bad as many expected according to analysts.
CEO Terry Smart told investors at the Companies AGM today, that the Group had witnessed another strong year with record sales and earnings per share.
Group sales came in at $9.63 billion, up 4.3% on the prior year, and when compared to the pre Covid period of FY19, they were up 35.7%.
EBIT was down 3.2% on last year to $769.0 million.
He said that the business remained strong compared to pre- Covid FY19 and was up 106.3% compared to that period.
Earnings per share was also up 0.1% to 479.9 cents per share, and up 120.7% on pre Covid FY19.
The total dividend for FY23 was 312 cps, representing 65% of NPAT.
He pointed out that Group’s balance sheet continued to be strong with low financial and operating leverage and closing net cash of $127.5 million on 30 June 2023.
Acknowledging that the business was currently facing a tough period he said “A strong retail execution is vital. We will focus on growing our market share by attracting new customers to the brands and stay focused on delivering and proving value to our customers by creating best in market offers and promotions.”
He said that the business intended to leverage the efficiency of their operating model, with their flexible business model and low-cost culture key to responding to changes in the environment.
Also on the agenda was a move to evolve categories and store layouts to “further drive the in-store experience and engagement”.
Among the categories that are growing in the downturn is Wellness and health related products.
Smart said that there is a good opportunity that the Group can grow and expand their JB Hi-Fi New Zealand business that saw 1% growth in the last quarter.
He said that the Companies Queen St & Hamilton stores in Auckland have been relocated, and that the Company has opened 2 duty free airport stores in Auckland and Christchurch international airports and expect to open 2 new standard format JB Hi-Fi stores before Christmas.
In August 2023, the business announced the appointment of Christy Boyce as a non-executive director with effect from 16 September 2023. Christy has over 25 years’ advisory experience in Australia and the United States with extensive involvement in retail, including pricing, online strategy, loyalty programs and sales & marketing.
Chairman Stephen Goddard told investors that since JB Hi-Fi Limited listed in October 2003 the JB Hi-Fi share price had delivered an annual compound growth rate of 17.6% to 25 October 2023, compared to 3.7% on the ASX 200 Index.
