Iconic bootmaker Dr. Martens is expected to say its annual pre-tax profits have dived more than 40 per cent on Thursday, primarily due to tough trading in the US.
Analysts think Dr. Martens will say its profits for the 12 months to the end of March are down from £159.4million to £93.1million – the second year in a row that it has had a double-digit decline. Additionally, its revenues are tipped to be down 11.2 per cent to £888.34million and the dividend is tipped to fall from 5.8p per share to 4.5p, for a shareholder payout worth £43.3million.
Chief executive Kenny Wilson, who has overseen five profits warnings since December 2022, will blame inflation and sharp declines in its US wholesale business.
Dr. Martens’ shares have lost more than 80 per cent of their value since floating on the London Stock Exchange in January 2021. Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said that with shareholders already “nursing heavy losses”, they will scrutinise its outlook for its 2024/25 financial year.
“Dr. Martens sees a potential two-thirds fall in pre-tax profits as the worstcase scenario but has not ruled out the possibility of an improvement. Markets will be watching out for further guidance,” he said.
