**Summary**
Pets at Home Group Plcs FY26 preliminary results highlight a focus on their Retail Turnaround Plan and growth in their Vet business. Despite a slight decline in statutory revenue and profit, consumer revenue grew by 1.0%, driven by a 5.0% increase in Vet Group consumer revenue. The Retail Turnaround Plan, launched in Q3, aims to improve product, price, execution, and cost, with early signs of success in H2. Customer satisfaction increased, and active Pets Club members remained stable at 7.4 million. The Vet Group expanded with new practices and extensions, while subscription revenue grew to 15.2%. The company is progressing with its Pets Insurance offering and welcomed the CMAs recognition of competitive pricing in its veterinary services. Financial highlights include a 1.0% increase in total Group consumer revenue, a 10.4% rise in Vet Group underlying PBT, and a 57.8% decline in Retail underlying PBT due to sales and gross margin declines. Free cash flow decreased by 26.1% to ยฃ61.9 million. The company proposes a dividend of 7.4p per share and a ยฃ50m share buyback, reflecting its refreshed capital allocation approach.
Here is the comparison of financials and debt year on year presented as an HTML table:
| Metric | FY26 (ยฃm) | FY25 (ยฃm) | YoY Change |
|---|
| Group Statutory Revenue | 1,469.6 | 1,481.7 | (0.8%) |
| Group Statutory PBT | 86.5 | 120.6 | (28.3%) |
| Group Underlying PBT | 92.8 | 133.0 | (30.2%) |
| Free Cash Flow | 61.9 | 83.8 | (26.1%) |
| Adjusted Net (Debt)/Cash | (19.4) | 6.2 | N/A |
| Underlying Basic EPS (p) | 14.8 | 21.0 | (29.7%) |
| Dividend (p) | 7.4 | 13.0 | (43.1%) |
**Key Observations:** - **Revenue Decline:** Group Statutory Revenue decreased by 0.8%, primarily due to a 1.0% decline in Retail revenue, partially offset by a 5.0% increase in Vet Group consumer revenue.
- **Profitability Compression:** Both Group Statutory PBT and Group Underlying PBT saw significant declines of 28.3% and 30.2%, respectively, driven by lower Retail profitability and increased costs.
- **Cash Flow Reduction:** Free Cash Flow decreased by 26.1%, mainly due to lower underlying PBT and higher capital expenditures.
- **Debt Increase:** Adjusted Net Debt increased to ยฃ19.4m from a net cash position of ยฃ6.2m in FY25, reflecting lower Retail underlying PBT and increased borrowings.
- **EPS and Dividend Cuts:** Underlying Basic EPS decreased by 29.7%, and the dividend was cut by 43.1%, reflecting the overall decline in profitability and cash flow.