MJW.L Share News (MJW)

Oriel Securities repeated its 'reduce' rating for Majestic Wine, saying momentum at the wine retailer is negative yet the stock's valuation is still at a premium to the sector.Majestic said on Monday that challenging trading conditions resulted in a 0.1% fall in UK like-for-like sales in the year to March 31st, although total sales rose 1.4% to £278.2m as the group opened 13 shops during the year.Pre-tax profit was largely in line with last year at £23.8m as expected, Oriel said."Given the March profit warning we knew FY14 would look grim and management's rhetoric for FY15 remains highly cautious," the broker said."Yes, the weather was tough in the fourth quarter which is a mitigating factor to a degree but there is more chapter and verse on the underlying problems here and they mostly surround the online proposition. It is very interesting that management is now flagging a much tougher market online, with new entrants taking share."The broker said that there are "plenty of better options for investors to choose from" to tap into the online market, as it does not expect improvements in Majestic's web offer to happen overnight.The broker has a 375p target price for the stock, which was trading nearly 4% lower at 416.5p by 10:12.BC