Kingfisher ends year 8216 in good shape 8217

The owner of B&Q claims to be in a good position.


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By :  ,  Financial Analyst

B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher's share price has risen strongly this morning (March 25th) following the release of the firm's latest financial results.

It was revealed by the firm that its group profits for 2013 rose by almost ten per cent to £759 million, with investors responding well to the news.

In the UK and Ireland, the company stated that B&Q's total sales rose slightly, with an increase taking the amount to £3.6 billion. Meanwhile, it was also noted that there was a considerable rise in Screwfix total sales, which the results showed were up by 17.6 per cent to £665 million.

Chief executive Sir Ian Cheshire admitted the last 12 months had been "challenging" for the firm, but stated that it is now in "good shape" as it moves into the future.

"Our prospects remain bright, giving us confidence to invest in the business and actively manage our portfolio," Sir Ian added.

Bright future

Prospects for the year to come were described by the company as being "bright" and it also announced that it would return £200 million to shareholders this year.

France remains one of the most important markets for Kingfisher, with Sir Ian noting that the European country was not hit as hard by the global financial crash as many other nations. It was pointed out by the chief executive that France's economic backdrop "was generally soft".

Kingfisher is also the owner of Brico Depot and Castorama in France and the latest financial results released by the firm showed that sales grew by 0.8 per cent to £4.4 billion.

Investors responded extremely positively to the news Kingfisher's profits rose during the course of 2013 and the share price of the business was over three per cent up in the early stages of trading on the London Stock Exchange this morning.

By 08:36 GMT, stocks in the B&Q and Screwfix owner were 3.42 per cent up on the start of the day and were continuing to rise on the back of the improved results.

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