British retailer Marks & Spencer Group Plc posted an expected 40 percent slide in full-year profit and cut its final dividend by a third to conserve cash, just 12 months after hiking it.
“Trading for the first seven weeks of the year has been broadly in line with trends experienced in the fourth quarter. We remain cautious about the outlook for the remainder of the year,” executive chairman Stuart Rose said.
The 125-year-old group, which is the UK’s biggest clothing retailer, said it made an underlying pretax profit of £604.4 million (US$927.5 million) for the year to March 28.
This compares with analysts’ consensus forecast of £603 million, a company poll of 34 analysts showed, and £1 billion made in the previous year.
Sales were up 0.4 percent at £9.1 billion.
M&S said it was rebasing its dividend payment to 15 pence from the 22.5 pence paid in 2007 and last year, a reduction of 33.3 percent.
It said this would be achieved through a 33.1 percent cut in the final dividend to 9.5 pence, followed by a reduction in the interim dividend for this year and next year to 5.5 pence.
The dividend cut is a blow to M&S’ army of about 213,000 small investors. They own about 21 percent of the firm’s equity and played a major role in thwarting billionaire retailer Philip Green’s takeover attempt in 2004.
It is also embarrassing for Rose, who just 12 months ago raised the total dividend payout by 23 percent.
The cut will pile more pressure on Rose, who was already under fire from investors for combining the jobs of chairman and chief executive against corporate governance best practice.
M&S said its UK gross margin was expected to fall by 125 to 175 basis points this year and next year, with UK operating costs falling by about 1 percent.
Capital expenditure was forecast to fall to about £400 million from £625 million.
The retailer ended the year with a net debt estimated at £2.5 billion.
Shares in M&S have lost 18 percent of their value over the last year but have risen 23 percent over the last three months on recovery hopes, outperforming the DJ STOXX European retail index by 15 percent.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source