Related Articles
Top Stories
May 25 2012 13:58
The costs of the first phase of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project have increased significantly to almost R90bn, according to a report.
May 25 2012 19:13
Uncertainty over the future of the euro zone returned to push the rand down against the dollar.
May 25 2012 11:36
The JSE has identified and stopped "incorrect" trades from one of its members, and will reverse the trades and lower the session's total value after the close.
Johannesburg - Pick n Pay investors will find out soon whether the group has weathered the financial storm as well as its rival Shoprite, as the retailer is expected to release its interim results for the period to August 2009 on Wednesday.
In a trading update released in September, Pick n Pay said it expected 3% to 10% growth in headline earnings per share (Heps) for the period. That would be on the 90.3c Heps the group delivered in the previous comparative period, which was 15.2% higher than in 2007.
When Shoprite earlier announced its results for the full year to end-June, it showed Heps growth by 30.9% to 390.8c.
Analysts said some of Pick n Pay's middle-income earning customers have downgraded to Shoprite in search of lower prices. Shoprite also reported it had gained 1.5% market share, supposedly from Pick n Pay and Woolworths.
Investment analyst at RMB Asset Management Evan Walker said the trading update indicated results would reflect prevailing economic hardships, characterised by consumers who shop down because of insufficient disposable income.
Diane Lass, equity analyst at Investec Asset Management, said food inflation, which often benefits food retailers, has come down sharply in the past few months and "would probably affect Pick n Pay's top line".
However, Pick n Pay's rebranding and the conversion of Score Supermarkets into Pick n Pay Family Franchises has been a great success, she said.
- Fin24.com