Yahoo Finance UK’s LaToya Harding writes:
Greggs was on a roll on Tuesday as summer drinks and pizza deals boosted sales. Shares surged more than 6% in London as like-for-like sales climbed 7.4% with underlying pre-tax profits hitting £74.1m for the six months to 29 June.
The Greggs App saw participation increase to 18.3%, close to doubling last year’s 10.6%, which is expected to drive higher purchase frequency going forward due to the loyalty scheme on offer.
The high street bakery chain added that sales were helped by new menu options, with iced drinks such as its mango and strawberry cooler and the strawberries and cream refresher now available in 500 shops, and with plans to roll out to a further 200 shops this year.
Roisin Currie, chief executive, said: “Greggs has made good progress in the first half of the year, further broadening our range of on-the-go food and drink whilst making it more accessible to more customers.
“Our cost outlook for 2024 remains unchanged and we continue to trade in line with our plan. The board remains confident in the long-term growth strategy, and we are investing to support that growth.”
Greggs said it remains committed to its long-term aims to have “significantly” more than 3,000 shops across the UK, having opened 99 new shops and closed 18 to reach 2,524 in the first half.
Mamta Valechha, consumer discretionary analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said: “Management has reiterated its outlook, with trading in line with expectations and cost inflation expected to moderate within the range of 4-5% as previously guided.
“Greggs has unique growth opportunities and a compelling value proposition, which puts it in a strong position particularly in this tough consumer landscape.”
