J D WETHERSPOON PLC PRELIMINARY RESULTS (For the 53 weeks ended 29 July 2012)
'Record sales, profit and earnings per share before exceptional items'
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS Excluding Week 53
| Revenue | £1,197.1m (2011: £1,072.0m) | +11.7% | +9.3% |
| Like-for-like sales | +3.2% | ||
| Free cash flow | £91.5m (2011: £78.8m) | +16.1% | |
| Free cash flow per share | 73.2p (2011: 59.7p) | +22.6% | |
| Profit before tax | £58.9m (2011: £61.4m) | -4.1% | |
| Dividends per share | 12.0p (2011: 12.0p) | ||
| Before exceptional items: | |||
| Operating Profit | £107.3m (2011: £102.3m) | + 4.9% | + 2.6% |
| Profit before tax | £72.4m (2011: £66.8m) | + 8.4% | + 5.8% |
| Earnings per share | 41.3p (2011: 35.3p) | +17.0% | +14.4% |
Commenting on the results, Tim Martin, the chairman of J D Wetherspoon plc, said:
"I am pleased to report a year of further progress for the company, with record sales, profit and earnings per share before exceptional items.
As previously indicated, the biggest dangers to the pub industry, are the VAT disparity between supermarkets and pubs, combined with the continuing imposition of stealth taxes, such as the late-night levy and the increase in fruit/slot machine taxes.
In the six weeks to 9 September 2012, like-for-like sales increased by 8.4%, with total sales increasing by 12.8%, helped by a strong performance during the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Sales this summer have been enhanced by a number of one-off events and we do not expect to sustain this level of growth. As previously indicated, it is anticipated that taxation and input costs will continue to rise. Overall therefore, the company is aiming for a reasonable outcome, in the current financial year."
