Marks & Spencer has reportedly decided to forgo its usual trading update when it meets shareholders at its annual general meeting (AGM) this week.
Therefore, M&S will not be informing the market on its first-quarter trading, as it has done in previous years, reports the Irish Times.
It is understood that M&S’s decision to keep its financial figures under wraps is part of its new chairman, Archie Norman plans to 'take a more long-term view of the embattled business'.
New Management Team
“M&S is in a multi-year change programme with a new management team,” said Clive Black, retail analyst at Shore Capital.
“Clearly that team wants the space to implement its plans with reduced stockmarket distraction and so it is pressing on.”
"However, the board would be obliged to issue a financial statement if it believes it will miss profit targets for the full year."
Shore Capital expects M&S’s pre-tax profit to come in at £540 million (€611 million) for the 2019 financial year.
M&S now reportedly only reports its full-year, half-year and third-quarter figures, which come shortly after Christmas.
© 2018 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
