FY 2020/21 Technical guidance

Income statement:

• Sales outlook
  • Uncertainty over COVID-19 and the impact of temporary lockdown restrictions in most of our markets continue to limit our visibility
•  Costs
  • Anticipate that FY 20/21 adjusted profit before tax will include c.£175m of temporary cost savings (including government support measures and other non-recurring cost savings), net of any one-off COVID-related costs
  • COVID-related costs⁽¹⁾ – expected to be c.£45m (previous guidance c.£40m), which includes one-off and recurring elements
  • UK business rates – payment relief for parts of the UK, effective for 20/21 tax year. c.£130m of Kingfisher’s annual business rates bill is eligible for this relief, of which c.£110m falls in FY 20/21
  • Furlough – no claims under furlough programmes in the UK (including the Job Retention Bonus) and France since 1 July; repaid UK furlough benefit received in H1 20/21 (c.£23m) in November 2020
  • Central costs – expected to be c.£58m (previous guidance c.£58-60m; FY 19/20: £62m)
•  Net finance costs
  • Expected to be in line with prior year (FY 19/20: £173m, before exceptional items) due to incremental financing costs for PGE, CCFF and RCFs, offset by impact of reduced lease liability
• Tax rate
  • Group adjusted effective tax rate expected to be c.23%⁽²⁾ (previous guidance c.24%; FY 19/20: 26%)
• Exceptional items
  • Expect to record c.£15-20m of restructuring costs in H2 20/21 in relation to the Group’s proposed new commercial operating model (as announced in September 2020)

Cash flow:

• PGE – subject to circumstances and certain conditions being met, the Group is considering a repayment of the c.£542m French Term facility in Q4 20/21
• Working capital – anticipate continued rebuild of inventory and reversal of H1 20/21 creditor positions through H2 20/21
• Capital expenditure – gross capex of c.£280m (previous guidance up to c.£300m; FY 19/20: £342m); c.£70m of further expenditure deferred into FY 21/22
• Tax – incremental one-off cash impact this year of c.£50m from HMRC accelerated UK corporation tax payments (previous guidance c.£45-50m)

Previously announced 11 store closures in France

• All 11 stores now closed:
  • 3 stores closed in France (1 Castorama, 2 Brico Dépôt) in H2 19/20
  • 4 Castorama stores closed in H1 20/21
  • 4 further Castorama stores closed in H2 20/21 to date, of which 2 are to be converted to Brico Dépôt stores (opening next year)    
• All cash costs of closures in FY 20/21 fully provided for in previous periods

Footnotes

⁽¹⁾ Includes costs of PPE and social distancing, donations, new store layouts, additional store security, and bonuses to frontline store staff.

⁽²⁾ Subject to the blend of profit within the companies’ various jurisdictions.

Information correct as at 19 November 2020.

Forward-looking statements

You are not to construe the content of the information above as investment, legal or tax advice and you should make your own evaluation of the Company and the market. If you are in any doubt about the contents of the information above or the action you should take, you should consult a person authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as amended) (or if you are a person outside the UK, otherwise duly qualified in your jurisdiction).

This information has been prepared in relation to the financial results for the quarter ended 31 October 2020. The financial information referenced above is not audited and does not contain sufficient detail to allow a full understanding of the results of the Group. Nothing in this information should be construed as either an offer or invitation to sell or any offering of securities or any invitation or inducement to any person to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire securities in any company within the Group or an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity under section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as amended).

Certain information may constitute "forward-looking statements" (including within the meaning of the safe harbour provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995), which can be identified by the use of terms such as "may", "will", "would", "could", "should", "expect", "anticipate", "project", "estimate", "intend", "continue", "target", "plan", "goal", "aim" or "believe" (or the negatives thereof) or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts and include statements regarding the Company's intentions, beliefs or current expectations and those of our Officers, Directors and employees concerning, amongst other things, the Company's results of operations, financial condition, changes in global or regional trade conditions, changes in tax rates, changes to customer preferences, liquidity, prospects, growth and strategies, acts of war or terrorism worldwide, work stoppages, slowdowns or strikes, public health crises, outbreaks of contagious disease, environmental disruption or political volatility. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results or actual performance of the Company to differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such forward-looking statements. For further information regarding risks to Kingfisher’s business, please consult the risk management section in the company’s Annual Report (as published). No representation or warranty is made as to the achievement or reasonableness of and no reliance should be placed on such forward-looking statements.

The Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect any new information or change in circumstances or in the Company's expectations.