Christmas toys for pets on display at a Pets at Home store in Weymouth, Britain, November 10, 2023. REUTERS
March 31 (Reuters) – British pet care retailer Pets at Home reaffirmed its annual profit forecast on Tuesday after its turnaround plan helped revive sales growth at its retail business, which had been hit by falling demand for discretionary pet products.
The company, which also offers grooming and veterinary services, has been working to fix product ranges and restore execution in its pet food and accessories business, while its fast-growing veterinary division continues to underpin profits.
Pets at Home shook up its leadership with a new CEO and CFO to lead the turnaround, following a challenging 2025 marked by profit warnings.
Shares rose nearly 5% in early trading.
- Pets at Home said it has completed its 20-million-pound ($26.39 million) cost-savings target and implemented price investments as part of its turnaround plan focused on product, price, execution and cost.
- The retail business returned to positive like-for-like sales growth in the second half, it said, with fourth-quarter performance improving sequentially.
- The company expects the retail business to deliver underlying profit of about 30 million pounds for the year ending March 2026.
- It expects annual profits at the veterinary division to grow to 83 million pounds, despite an expected slowdown in sales growth “as customer cohorts reach a typical lull in activity”.
- Pets at Home maintained its underlying pre-tax profit expectations for fiscal 2026, and said it was comfortable with analyst consensus expectations of around 99 million pounds for fiscal 2027.
- The update comes as Britain’s veterinary sector faces new regulatory requirements including price transparency measures and prescription fee caps, though Pets at Home said it expects no adverse impact from the changes.
($1 = 0.7579 pounds)
Reporting by Raechel Thankam Job in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman
