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Birmingham Post
Birmingham Post
Business
Jon Robinson

JD Sports profits rise to at least £900m as full-year results delayed

JD Sports has delayed the publication of its full-year results over the divestment of Footasylum and to give more time to split Peter Cowgill's joint chairman and chief executive role.

The Greater Manchester-headquartered company added the move would also "ensure that KPMG have sufficient time to complete its global audit procedures".

In a statement issued to the London Stock Exchange, it said the delay would "allow the group to report on the outcome of the divestment of Footasylum with greater certainty".

READ MORE: JD Sports boss Peter Cowgill sells 10 million shares in retail giant

JD Sports also said it would also let it to complete a review of its governance procedures and policies "in light of the ongoing process" to divide the current joint role of executive chairman and chief executive, which is held by Mr Cowgill.

The listed group added it expects to issue an update on the review as part of its final results.

The news comes after the retailer and Footasylum were fined almost £5m after breaching the rules around a merger blocked by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

In a statement issued on Monday, February 14, the CMA said during two meetings, which took place on July 5, 2021, and August 4, 2021, JD Sports CEO Peter Cowgill and Footasylum CEO Barry Bown "exchanged commercially sensitive information and then failed to alert or promptly alert the CMA".

In a new statement to the London Stock Exchange, JD Sports said its full-year accounts are set "to be slightly ahead of previous expectations".

It added its profits before tax and exceptional items for the 12 months to January 29, 2022, are not expected to be at least £900m.

In a trading update published last month, the group confirmed its total like-for-like revenue for the 22 weeks to January 1, 2022, was more than 10% ahead of the same period in 2020.

The JD Sports statement added: "The group will make a further announcement on the timetable for announcing its final results in due course."

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