Key highlights
Sports Retail revenue increased by 0.6% (excluding Heatons)
Sports Retail like-for-like stores gross contribution decreased by 0.8% (FY15: 7.4%)
Underlying profit before tax decreased by 8.4% to £275.2m (1)
Underlying earnings per share decreased by 8.7% to 35.5p (1)
Underlying free cash generation of £309.1 m (2)
Net debt increased to £99.6m (£59.7m at 26 April 2015)(3)
Continued roll out of large format "Key Location Doors"
Latest phase of ongoing Shirebrook campus development now complete
Completed the acquisition of remaining 50% of the Heatons Irish business
Continued investment in inventory and strategic stakes while maintaining a strong balance sheet
Dave Forsey, Chief Executive, said:
"The Group has delivered a disappointing full year financial performance, impacted primarily by a tough trading environment in the second half across our sports retail businesses.
Our continued investment in upgrading and relocating stores, including Key Location Doors such as Leeds and Plymouth, has been well received by our leading third party suppliers.
Unfortunately our disappointing results have meant that the Group has not achieved the first EBITDA target set by the 2015 Share Scheme, which is a key long term share-based incentive scheme that rewards eligible staff for their hard work and commitment, and is based on the achievement of four consecutive full year EBITDA targets. This is very disappointing as the Share Scheme is a significant part of our high performance and reward culture, and we are working to replace this arrangement with a new incentive scheme to continue to reward our people for their commitment and performance.
I would like to thank all of our people for being part of the Sports Direct team in what has been a particularly tough year for the Group. Thank you for all your hard work this year and in the past, and I look forward to our future achievements."
