Mitchells & Butler profits slump

Published on Saturday 21 November 2009 14:16

PROFITS at pubs group Mitchells & Butler are expected to have plummeted by up to a quarter when it reports annual results this week despite aggressive pricing to try to lure drinkers back to its bars.

Promotional activity at the group – which owns the All Bar One, O'Neill's and Toby Carvery brands – is likely to have boosted like-for-like sales by 1.6 per cent, according to analysts at Numis, but will have eaten into profits.

Consensus forecasts are for pre-tax profits to come in at 121 million, with Numis predicting profits of around 125m.

But in an upbeat pre-close statement in September, M&B said it expected earnings before exceptionals to beat City forecasts of 83m.

Numis said improved like-for-like sales figures include a 2.5 per cent rise at pubs in residential areas, against a 0.1 per cent fall on high streets.