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Dr Martens PLC shares soared on Wednesday after it reported a surge in annual profit, due to a strong recovery in its Retail arm.
Shares in Dr Martens were trading 26% higher in London on Wednesday morning at 272.80 pence each.
The Wollaston, Northamptonshire-based footwear and clothing brand posted a pretax profit of £214.3 million for the year ended March 31, more than tripled from £69.7 million the year prior.
Revenue rose 18% to £908.3 million from £773.0 million.
The company attributed this growth mainly to increased Retail revenue that jumped 86% to £185.6 million in from £99.7 million.
‘Retail continues to be an important and profitable channel, allowing us to fully showcase the brand and our product range,’ the company said. ‘When Covid-19 restrictions were lifted across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Americas we generally saw a very good retail recovery, ahead of our expectations.’
Further, it recorded a jump in E-commerce revenue of 11% to £262.4 million from £235.4 million, as brand and product awareness and consumer engagement grew.
Dr Martens proposed a maiden final dividend of 4.28 pence, taking the total payout for the year to 5.50p.
Looking ahead, the company expects ‘high-teens revenue growth’ for financial 2023.
It also backed its medium term guidance, which expects E-commerce to grow to at least a 40% mix, with total direct to consumer, including retail, making up the remaining 60%.
It anticipates its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization margin to reach 30% in the medium-term.
‘We view all three of these as medium-term milestones, as opposed to ceiling targets, and see potential to expand beyond these metrics in the years beyond,’ Dr Martens said.
Chief Executive Kenny Wilson commented: ‘Today's strong results have been driven by our proven DTC-first strategy and continue to build upon our track record of volume-led growth.’
‘When we listed, we committed to deliver high-teens revenue growth, and today we are pleased to report 22% constant currency growth and Ebitda ahead of market expectations.’
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