(Alliance News) - Wm Morrison Supermarkets PLC on Tuesday said challenging trading conditions and sustained consumer uncertainty led to a sales fall in the 22 weeks to January 5.
During the period, the grocer said like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, were down 1.7% year-on-year. The decline was solely due to a fall in retail sales, as like-for-like performance in the wholesale unit was flat year-on-year.
"Throughout the period, trading conditions remained challenging and the customer uncertainty of the last year was sustained," Morrisons explained.
Including fuel, like-for-like sales decline 2.8% year-on-year during the 22 weeks.
Total sales, were down 2.9% year-on-year, but declined 1.8% when not including fuel sales.
The firm reiterated its full-year guidance, expecting pretax profit before exceptional costs to be in line with analysts' forecasts. Morrisons ends its financial year on February 2.
The company said: "We managed costs well throughout the period, offsetting some of the impact on like-for-like sales of the challenging trading conditions and continued uncertainty amongst customers."
Although tight-lipped on its trading over the festive period alone, Morrisons said its 'Free From' brand, which offers gluten and dairy free goods, had a 34% sales rise over the Christmas and New Year period.
Chief Executive David Potts added: "It was encouraging that during an unusually challenging period for sales, our execution was strong and our profitability robust, demonstrating the broad-based progress we have made during the turnaround.
"This was again down to the hard work of Morrisons exceptional team of food makers and shopkeepers. As always, we will take some learnings into the new year, and look forward to 2020 with a strong plan and solid foundations on which to continue to grow."
During the 22 weeks to early January, Morrisons closed four "underperforming" but opened four new ones.
Morrisons explained: "The new stores include Canning Town, which is our first store with a Market Kitchen food-to-go offer, and Bolsover, our first smaller, community store format."
The company also recently sold a store in Camden, London to Cobham, Surrey-based property developer Berkeley Group Holdings PLC for GBP120 million.
Morrisons said: "Berkeley will pay GBP85 million in stages over the years of the project, and will build a new Morrisons supermarket and convenience store on the site at a cost to Berkeley of around GBP35 million."
By Eric Cunha; ericcunha@alliancenews.com
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Berkeley Group (BKG)