Greene King has reported preliminary results for 52 weeks to 29 April 2018 showing group revenue at £2,176.7m, down 1.8% in like-for-likes (LFL), and profit before tax came to £243m, down 11.2%.
During the period, Pub Company LFL sales were down by 1.2%, Pub Partners LFL net profit was up by 0.4%, and Brewing & Brands revenue rose by 7.4%.
The company gave current trading figures showing Pub Company LFL sales are up 2.2% over the last eight weeks, aided by good weather and sporting fixtures. Pub Partners and Brewing & Brands are trading in line with expectations.
Greene King is seeing strong World Cup trading, with 59% of consumers expecting to watch an England game at the pub.
Rooney Anand, chief executive officer, said, “We made good progress improving the performance of the business during the second half of the year, despite a challenging trading environment.
'Our investment to improve the customer experience in our pubs and the focus on our strategic priorities are beginning to pay off. Positive momentum, both in terms of trading and customer satisfaction, is returning to our business.
“While it is still early days, this positive momentum has continued into the new financial year, aided by good weather and popular sporting events. We remain focused on continuing to drive top line growth, developing a more efficient organisation and further strengthening our capital structure to deliver long-term value creation for our shareholders.
“We expect the trading environment to remain challenging for some time, but we strongly believe people will continue to choose the great British pub as the place to enjoy time with friends and family.”
Greene King runs more than 3,000 pubs, restaurants and hotels, and owns Hungry Horse, Chef & Brewer and Farmhouse Inns.