Topps Tiles to hit market share targets early after record year

Topps Tiles said that profits are expected to hit consensus forecasts as it reported its third year of record turnover despite sales growth "moderating" in the fourth quarter.

The tiles retailer delivered group sales for the 12 months to 30 September of £263m, up 6.4% year-on-year and a "significant outperformance relative to the UK tiling market", the company said. In the final quarter alone, however, sales rose by 3.2% year-on-year.

Topps said it now expects to hit its 20% market share target for 2025 "significantly ahead of schedule". In the year to September 2022, market share stood at 19% but the company reported a "strong increase" since then.

Adjusted pre-tax profit is expected to be line with analysts' estimates ranging between £11.3m-12.3m.

"As we celebrate our 60th anniversary, we are delighted to have delivered a third consecutive year of record sales in Topps Group, having increased our sales by over £40 million since the pre-pandemic period, reflecting the significant development and diversification of the group over that time," said chief executive Rob Parker.

"Despite a slowing [repairs, maintenance and improvements] market, we are confident that our core strengths of leading brands, world class customer service, specialist expertise and a strong balance sheet will enable us to grow sales, profitability and cash generation in the years ahead, delivering value for all stakeholders."

The stock was up 0.6% at 48.4p by 0820 BST.