B&M European Value Retail S.A., the UK's leading variety goods value retailer, has released a trading update for the third quarter of its current financial year. The update covers the 13-week period from 24 September 2023 to 23 December 2023.

The Group reported a 5.0% year-on-year revenue growth in the quarter to £1,645m, with a year-to-date growth of 8.1% to £4,194m on a constant currency basis. B&M UK, B&M France, and Heron Foods all showed strong revenue performance during the period, with revenue growth percentages ranging from 3.7% to 19.8%.

The company's CEO, Alex Russo, expressed satisfaction with the performance across the Golden Quarter, highlighting strong operational execution and the Group's strategy as an everyday low-price discounter. The company remains focused on providing products at the best price to customers, particularly those facing significant cost-of-living pressures.

B&M European Value Retail S.A. is on track to open 76 gross new stores across the Group in FY24, and the Board will be declaring a special dividend of 20.0p per Ordinary Share to be paid on 9 February 2024 to shareholders on the register at 19 January 2024.

The company's guidance for Group adjusted EBITDA (pre-IFRS 16) within the target range of £620m - £630m for FY24 was reiterated, with a strong store pipeline and plans to open not less than 45 B&M UK stores in each of the next two financial years.

The announcement also included details about a conference call for investors and analysts to discuss the trading update, as well as contact information for further inquiries.

B&M European Value Retail S.A. is a variety retailer with 717 stores in the UK operating under the "B&M" brand, 331 stores under the "Heron Foods" and "B&M Express" brands, and 122 stores in France also operating under the "B&M" brand as at 23 December 2023.