Market Reaction - Big Yellow

Publish Date: 18 November 2024 

- Time Period: Six months ended 30 September 2024 

- Revenue for the six months ended 30 September 2024 increased to £103.0 million, up 3% from £99.6 million in the same period in 2023. 

- Store revenue rose 4% to £102.2 million, while like-for-like store revenue grew 3% to £101.0 million. 

- Store EBITDA was £70.9 million, down 1% from £71.5 million. 

- Adjusted profit before tax increased by 3% to £54.9 million. 

- EPRA earnings per share dropped 3% from 29.0 pence to 28.0 pence. 

- The interim dividend per share remained the same at 22.6 pence. 

- Statutory profit before tax was £145.8 million, up 22% from £119.6 million. 

- Cash flow from operating activities after net finance costs and pre-working capital movements decreased by 1% to £53.5 million. 

- Average achieved net rent per square foot rose by 4% period-on-period. 

- The company opened a new 65,000 sq ft freehold store in Slough, transferred customers from a nearby leasehold store and acquired a freehold property in Leamington Spa. 

- The company has 12 development sites and one replacement store in the pipeline, amounting to around 1.0 million square feet. 

- Planning consent was granted for key London proposed stores at West Kensington, Kentish Town and Staples Corner. 

- The company disposed of land adjacent to their Battersea store for £30.9 million. 

- Nicholas Vetch,Executive Chairman mentioned, "We will grow revenue through incrementally increasing occupancy levels from our existing store platform alongside driving efficiencies across the business through investment in automation." He also said that the company is committed to capturing the opportunity of the revenue and earnings growth from their store pipeline. 

You can download the full report here: https://otp.tools.investis.com/clients/uk/big_yellow1/rns/regulatory-story.aspx?cid=709&newsid=1886023&culture=en-GB

The market didn’t respond favourably to the update from Big Yellow, with shares dipping slightly on the day. It seems this outcome was largely anticipated, though I found the update quite positive. Perhaps the market places more emphasis on their operating profit than I do. While that aspect of the business remained flat, the company reassured investors about the stability of demand, which continues to hold firm.