JB Hi-Fi has reported results for the six months ending 31 December 2024.
The Group
For the six months ending 31 December 2024, the retail group reported a total sales increase of 9.8% to $5.67 billion with earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) up 8.6% to $419.9 million. Net Profit After Tax increased 8.0% to $285.4 million.
JB Hi-Fi
Total sales increased by 7.2% to $3.88 billion with comparable sales up 7.2%, driven by continued customer demand for technology and consumer electronics products and supported by well-executed Black Friday and Boxing Day promotional periods.
The key growth categories were Mobile Phones, Small Appliances, Computers, Televisions and Cameras. Online sales increased by 16.4% to $682.7 million or 17.6% of total sales.
Gross profit increased by 6.4% to $846.4 million with gross margin down 17 basis points to 21.8%, driven by sales mix and increased competitive activity. Cost Of Doing Business was down 10 basis points to 11.8%, and in absolute terms grew 6.2%, with disciplined cost control helping to manage inflationary cost pressures.
The business’ low Cost of Doing Business remains a competitive advantage and was maintained through a continued focus on productivity, minimising unnecessary expenditure and leveraging scale. EBIT increased by 7.5% to $316.5 million with EBIT margin up 2 basis points to 8.2%.
The Good Guys
The Good Guys sales increased by 9.2% to $1.52 billion with comparable sales up 8.8%.
Key growth categories were floorcare, televisions, portable appliances, cooking and refrigeration. Online sales increased by 8.9% to $233.3 million or 15.4% of total sales. Gross profit increased by 8.0% to $351.1 million with gross margin down 25 basis points (0.25%) to 23.1%, driven by increased competitive activity.
Cost of Doing Business was 13.6% – up 1 basis point and in absolute terms grew 9.3%, driven by investment in store wages to support increased store traffic. EBIT was up 7.5% to $99.5 million with EBIT down 10 basis points to 6.5%.
e&s
JB Hi-Fi purchased 75% of the e&s business on 2 September 2024 and the data in the half year results represents 120 days of trading. Described as “a highly complementary premium home appliance retailer”, e&s delivered sales growth of 7.6% to $92.3 million with comparable sales up 7.2%. Sales growth was driven by the Commercial division. EBIT was $1.9 million, in line with the Group’s expectations, with EBIT margin at 2.0%.
JB Hi-Fi CEO Terry Smart said, “We are pleased to report strong sales and earnings for HY25.
“In this challenging trading environment, marked by heightened competitor activity, our focus remained on maximising demand through delivering consistently high levels of customer service and exceptional value for our customers.
“Our value proposition – big brands, big range, low prices and the trust that customers have in us to deliver this value is definitely supporting the sales growth in the half, as well as our passionate and knowledgeable staff.
“We know what is important to shoppers; they want to de-risk that purchasing journey and to do this, they will turn to those who they trust that have a large range and therefore choice.
“Those they have the confidence in to have product in stock, and those they trust to have the service and advice they are looking for and very importantly the confidence in getting the right price – this is the reputation our brands have earnt over many years.
“Supporting our ability to do this are our four key competitive advantages: scale, low costs, multi-channel and phone/chat/video.
“To leverage our strong supplier relationships both globally and locally, we have a large engaged and diverse customer base that gives us and the suppliers the ability to execute promotions and new product launches at scale.
“Our constant focus on productivity and minimising unnecessary expenditure allows us to maintain low price and drive value for our customers.
“Multi-channel provides convenience and easy access to the brands, giving customers the choice how they wish to shop with us through stores. Our stores are not only transactional; they are destinations for discovery, advice and significant impulse purchase opportunities.
“While Phone/Chat/Video gives easy and convenient access to staff knowledge and advice along with price negotiability.
“We are grateful to our team of more than 15,000 team members whose continued focus on delivering value and maintaining our high levels of customer service has helped to deliver these half year results.”
For further reading, check out our story: JB Hi-Fi January sales strong but affected by “competitor activity”