Arabic version: وولورثس تسجل أرباحاً بقيمة 1.14 مليار دولار مع ارتفاع المبيعات عبر الإنترنت
According to The Guardian, Woolworths reported a $175m rise in net profit to $1.14bn, while sales in its Australian supermarkets division increased 4.6% to $53.85bn in the year to June. Its market value rose by $2bn and briefly exceeded $50bn, its highest value since 2021.
The supermarket division’s profit margin rose to 5.5% from 5.3%, while pre-tax earnings increased by $232m to more than $2.95bn. Online sales across the company climbed 15.9% as Woolworths expanded in-store pickup and on-demand options around Australia.
Chief executive Amanda Bardwell said the higher margin had not resulted from lifting shelf prices, but from more customers buying more at Woolworths. She said shoppers had moved into “a new reality of entrenched value seeking” as cost-of-living pressures became ingrained. Annual reports said margins were helped by administrative cost cuts and lower stock loss, including theft.
The Ooshies promotion helped lift supermarket sales in the eight weeks since early July, with sales growing 7.6% above the previous year. Woolworths said Ooshies accounted for up to 2% of that growth, or more than $120m. Big W returned to profit, recording pre-tax earnings of $64m after a $33m loss a year earlier, though its sales declined in the past eight weeks.
