Business
Q4 Trading Statement
Q4 Trading Statement.
About this update from Marks And Spencer Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nRNS Number : 4598U Marks & Spencer Group PLC 07 April 2016 \n\n \n \nIssued: 7 April 2016\n \nMarks and Spencer Group Plc\nQuarter 4 2015/16 Trading Statement\n13 Weeks to 26 March 2016 \n \n 'Another good quarter in Food; more to do in Clothing and Home'\n \n \nFood sales continue to outperform the market\n· Sales +4.0%; LFL +0.0%; grew market share to 4.3%\n· New store opening programme performing ahead of expectation\n \nSignificant increase in Clothing and Home gross margin\n· Gross margin now expected to be between +240 to +250bps\n· Continued improvement in buying margin and some investment in price\n \nSome progress in Clothing and Home sales but more to do\n· Sales -1.9%; LFL -2.7%; reduced proportion of sales on promotional discount \n· M&S.com sales +8.2%; further improvement in customer satisfaction\n \nStrong cash generation \n· Continued tight management of costs and cash\n· £150m share buyback programme completed\n \n \nSteve Rowe, Chief Executive, said:\n\"I am very proud and privileged to be leading M&S. We are focused on getting even closer to our customers and putting them at the heart of everything we do. \n\"We had a mixed performance in the final quarter of the year. Our Food business once again outperformed the market by c.3.5% pts. Although the sales decline in Clothing and Home was lower than last quarter, our performance remains unsatisfactory and there is still more we need to do. \n\"Turning around our Clothing and Home business by improving our customer offer is our number one priority. I will update you on my thoughts on the business in May.\"\n \n \nTrading summary\nOverall, group sales were +1.9% for the quarter.\n \nThe Food business continued to outperform a highly competitive market. In line with our strategy, our store opening programme continues to drive strong sales growth. We opened 80 new stores in the year and as a result we grew our market share to 4.3%. Customers turn to us for special occasions and this quarter was no exception with our biggest ever Mothers' Day...