REG - Ocado Group PLC - Trading Statement <Origin Href="QuoteRef">OCDO.L</Origin>

OcadoAnnouncement

10/12/2015 07:11

RNS Number : 5864I
Ocado Group PLC
10 December 2015
Ocado Group Plc
10 December 2015
Trading Statement 
Ocado Group plc ("Ocado") today announces its trading statement for the 16 weeks to 29 November 2015.
FY2015 Q4

16 weeks to
29 November 2015
16 weeks to
30 November 2014
Growth
Gross sales (Group)1
Gross sales (Retail)1
381.6m
351.8m
331.9m
311.4m
15.0%
13.0%
Average orders per week2, 3
205,000
177,000
15.8%
Average order size2
107.16
109.74
(2.3)%
FY2015 

52 weeks to
29 November 2015
52 weeks to
30 November 2014
Growth
Gross sales (Group)1
Gross sales (Retail)1
1,204.4m
1,115.7m
1,026.5m
972.4m
17.3%
14.7%
As at 29 November 2015 the Group had cash and cash equivalents of 45.8 million, external borrowings4 of 53.2 million, and a further undrawn revolving credit facility5 of 210 million.
Tim Steiner, Ocado's Chief Executive Officer, said:
"We are pleased to report the thirteenth consecutive quarter of double-digit sales growth in what is a challenging and competitive grocery retail environment. Order growth remains strong with average orders per week now exceeding 200,000. This reflects the ongoing shift to online grocery shopping and the specific value customers place on Ocado's leading proposition, offering the highest service levels and widest range. Our basket value declined as we remain competitive by following market moves in pricing.
"We are committed to further improving our offer to customers and to driving operational and capital efficiency across the business, which we believe will support growth. We anticipate the retail environment to remain challenging, but expect to continue growing sales ahead of the online grocery market."
The Preliminary Results Announcement will be made on 2 February 2016.
Contacts
 Duncan Tatton-Brown, Chief Financial Officer, on 01707 228 000
 David Hardiman-Evans, Head of IR & Corporate Finance, on 01707 228 000 
 David Shriver or Michelle Clarke, Tulchan Communications on 020 7353 4200
Notes 
1. Gross sales (Retail) refers only to the results of Ocado.com, Fetch.co.uk and Sizzle.co.uk. Gross sales (Group) includes the benefits from the Morrison agreement and Retail business. Gross sales include revenue plus VAT and marketing vouchers.
2. Refers to Ocado.com, Fetch.co.uk and Sizzle.co.uk orders. Average order size excluding standalone orders for Fetch and Sizzle declined by 1.7%.
3. Growth percentage calculated on a rounded basis.
4. Gross debt excluding the finance lease payable to MHE JV Co.
5. Revolving credit facility of 210 million is unsecured and in place until 1 July 2019.
6. The figures used in this announcement are as yet unaudited.
7. A copy of this trading update is available onwww.ocadogroup.com.
Cautionary statement
Certain statements made in this announcement are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on current expectations and assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from any expected future events or results expressed or implied in these forward-looking statements. Persons receiving this announcement should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Unless otherwise required by applicable law, regulation or accounting standard, Ocado does not undertake to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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