Coles (COL) 1H beats expectations
COL +3.17%: A good set of 1H22 results today for Coles, particularly in the context of where the share price has traded over the past 6 months, down from ~$19 to below $16 on concerns around supply chain issues. Group sales were $20.5bn for the half up 1% on last year while EBITDA of $1,762bn was 2.2% down on 1H21 which shows the additional covid related costs they’ve had to wear (equated to about 28bps). The interim dividend of 33cps was a shade above market expectations of 32.2cps. In terms of their outlook/guidance, they said total sales growth for the 1st 6wks of this year indicated a strong start before moderating. All in all, a good solid result as you’d expect.
