News
BackDate:26 June 2012
Sales up 12% at Ocado
Ocado reported total sales grew 12% in the first half, while statutory pre-tax profit remained flat at £200,000. The online grocery retailer revealed EBITDA rose 4.5% to £14.9m in the 24 weeks to 13th May, while net debt rose to £71.3m, up from £19.2m on 27th November. Revenue was up 11.4% to £308m and operating profit declined from £2.4m last year to £1.7m in the six month period.
Chief executive Tim Steiner said that the Diamond Jubilee celebrations caused disruption to deliveries that the Olympics is also likely to have an impact.
“The grocery market and the general economic picture remain challenging and uncertain,”Mr Steiner said in a statement. “The third quarter is particularly hard to forecast as we have already seen some disruption from the Jubilee events, and there is uncertainty as to the effect of the forthcoming Olympic Games.”
Ocado has expanded its range of groceries and non-food items to over 22,500, up from 20,000 in November. The average number of weekly orders is up by 13% to 122,000, with 24% of orders now made via mobile devices. The e-retailer said its own brand products are now available in almost 80% of its products.