By Jonathan Davies
Shares in JD Sports have hit an all-time high after it said profits would beat forecasts.
Despite the impact of a weaker euro, the sports retailer said its profit are likely to be around £121 million, 10% higher than expectations and up 20% on last year. It said profits are likely to be above forecasts due to an unexpected surge in sales.
JD Sports is now worth £1.57 billion after shares rose 8% to a record high of 810p per share.
“We are pleased to report that the performance in our business has continued to be strong with like for like sales remaining in excess of management forecasts although, as previously reported, we have suffered some loss of margin from the weakness in the euro in JD’s euro denominated business,” the statement said.
“Subject to the continuation of a positive performance, we now anticipate that the headline profit before tax for the current year will be approximately 10% ahead of the current consensus market expectations of around £110m.”
Finance director Brian Small said the company is benefiting from the trend of sports clothing. He said: “I think there is a continuing fitness boom and people are more fashion conscious of the stuff they wear for their fitness activites and therefore there is a lot of colour in the products at the momnet.
“There is a lot of innovation - trainers get a lot lighter and more comfortable [with] better cushioning and on top of that there is a continuing trend towards casual."
