Clas Ohlson: Year-end report 1 May 2011 – 30 April 2012
Fourth quarter
* Sales totalled SEK 1,272 M (1,164), up 9%
* Operating profit amounted to SEK 10 M (4)
* Profit after tax was SEK 7 M (0)
* Earnings per share amounted to SEK 0.11 (0)
12 months
* Sales totalled SEK 6,260 M (5,828), up 7%
* Operating profit amounted to SEK 561 M (507), up 11%
* Profit after tax was SEK 400 M (364), up 10%
* Earnings per share amounted to SEK 6.29 (5.71), up 10%
* Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK 965 M (350)
* Dividend of SEK 4.25 per share (3.75) proposed
Events after the end of the reporting period
* Sales in May totalled SEK 434 M (414), up 5%.
* Resolution by the Board of Directors to exercise the Annual General Meeting’s authorisation to repurchase shares to guarantee LTI 2012.
CEO Klas Balkow comments:
“Higher growth and increased profit in the fourth quarter summarise the 2011/2012 financial year – a year when we continued to strengthen Clas Ohlson in a number of areas. We are capturing market shares in a retail sector that remains weak, improving our earnings and have a strong financial position on which to continue our quest to become a leading European retail chain.
“At the end of the quarter, we launched our new e-commerce platform in Sweden and Norway, which was well received. Continued deployment in Finland and the UK is planned for summer 2012 and we will also initiate preparations to expand into additional markets, initially with e-commerce,” says Klas Balkow, President and CEO.
Analyst and media conference
An analyst and media conference will be held today, Wednesday 13 June. For participation, please visit http://about.clasohlson.com or www.financialhearings.com
For more information, please contact:
Klas Balkow, CEO and President, Clas Ohlson AB: +46 (0)247-447 55
John Womack, Director of Information and IR, Clas Ohlson AB: +46 (0)247-444 05
The information in this press release comprises information that Clas Ohlson AB (publ) is required to disclose pursuant to the Swedish Securities Market Act and/or the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was released for publication at 08.00 (CET) on Wednesday, 13, June, 2012.
Clas Ohlson AB is a Swedish chain store that sells, amongst other things, hardware, electrical, multimedia, and home and leisure products. It is the largest hardware chain in Scandinavia. The company was founded in 1918 by the technically-minded Clas Ohlson (1895–1979), as a mail order business based in the Swedish village of Insjön, Dalarna. Initially, only manuals and technical literature were sold. He opened his first shop in Insjön in 1926 and there are now stores throughout Sweden, as well as in Norway and Finland. In 2008, the company opened its first store in the United Kingdom, in Croydon, south London. There are now stores at the Arndale Centre in Manchester, at The Harlequin in Watford, in Kingston upon Thames, Reading, Liverpool, Leeds, Birmingham, Cardiff, Doncaster, Norwich and Newcastle.
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