DFS Furniture reports drop in fiscal 2023 pretax profit amid economic challenges

DFS Furniture (LSE:DFS) reported on Thursday that its pretax profit for fiscal 2023 almost halved to £29.7 million ($36.7 million), down from £58.5 million the previous year. The company attributed the decline to a challenging economic backdrop and low consumer demand, which it expects to continue into the current financial year.

The U.K.-based furniture retailer's underlying profit before tax and brand amortization, a company-preferred metric, was £30.6 million. This figure sits at the lower end of the guided range of £30 million-£35 million, marking a significant drop from the prior year's £60.3 million.

Revenue also fell slightly to £1.09 billion from £1.15 billion, primarily due to a challenging market environment. This contrasts with the previous year when the market benefited from higher volumes linked to the pandemic.

Looking ahead to fiscal 2024, DFS Furniture maintained its expectation of underlying profit before tax and brand amortization in the range of £30 million-£35 million. The company anticipates revenue will hover between £1.06 billion and £1.08 billion.

"We are confident the market will recover, however we can't predict how quickly that will happen," the company stated.

In line with its guidance, DFS Furniture proposed a final dividend of 3.0 pence per share, down from 3.7 pence a year earlier.

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