Shares in fishing tackle and equipment seller Angling Direct (ANG:AIM) rallied 9.5% to 69p after the rods-to-reels retailer upgraded guidance for the year to January 2021 on the back of strong second half trading across all channels and a successful Black Friday performance.
A rare bit of bright news for the retail sector, the upgrade demonstrates the positive progress omni-channel minnow Angling Direct is making under chief executive Andy Torrance’s refreshed strategy to expand margins, drive sales of own brand Advanta and make the business more efficient.
RETAIL RE-OPENING
Confirming all 38 of its brick and mortar stores will fully re-open today following the lifting of government restrictions, Norwich-headquartered Angling Direct now believes it is likely to exceed current full year market expectations with a pre-IFRS EBITDA outturn of ‘not less than £3.8 million’.
That’s comfortably ahead of the £1.9 million the market was anticipating before this morning.
Drawing confidence from ‘the enhanced visibility over our operations as stores reopen’, the upgrade reflects strong trading since the bait boxes, nets and waders purveyor posted its interim results in October.
GROWTH ACROSS ALL CHANNELS
Over the nine months to 31 October 2020, sales across all channels grew by an impressive 30.5% to £54.5 million, while Angling Direct assured that ‘trading over the Black Friday period in the last week of November was a success and delivered in line with the company’s expectations’.
Guided by former Holland & Barrett chief operating officer Torrance, Angling Direct’s webstore traded uninterrupted during the second lockdown, while all its physical stores offered anglers a ‘Call and Collect’ service that enabled the AIM tiddler to continue to meet consumer demand and prioritise profitable growth.
‘Whilst the board is confident that its market leading position, strategy and resilient business model positions it well for further profitable growth, ongoing uncertainties relating to the pandemic and Brexit mean that the board will continue to adopt a prudent approach to planning for the next financial year,’ cautioned Angling Direct, also highlighting a balance sheet flush with £17.9 million cash as at 30 November following a £5.5 million placing in the summer.
