Temple & Webster shares have soared to a three-month high after the online furniture retailer handily beat profit expectations.
The company reported net profit after tax of $11.96 million in the 12 months to June 30, compared to consensus expectations of $5.6 million.
That's down 14.2 per cent from 2021/22 as Temple & Webster invested in people and product, including $1.7 million spent on its new home improvement website that went live in May, but the company reported strong sales growth.
Temple & Webster had $426.3 million in revenues, up 31 per cent on last year and 142 per cent on a two-year period.
Fifty five per cent of orders were from active customers, with their number growing by 21 per cent to 940,000.
"You know, what this result really does show is that we do have a sustainable business for the future," chief executive Mark Coulter told AAP.
"People have been worried about e-commerce and technology, but we've shown is that just a bit more careful management of cost base and margins - we're actually upping our EBITDA margin guidance for next year - we delivered a FY22 result well ahead of consensus."
The company said its earnings margin of 3.8 per cent was at the high end of its 2-4 per cent target range, and upgraded its 2022/23 margin guidance to 3 to 5 per cent.
With COVID-19 lockdowns over, July trading was down 21 per cent year on year, and trading for the first two weeks of August was down 17 per cent from a year ago.
"That's primarily because of the timing of lockdowns - this time last year, we were really almost in nationwide locks, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane for a little bit," Mr Coulter said.
Temple & Webster is predicting a return to double-digit growth once the comparison with the lockdown period ends.
The retailer closed the year with $101 million in cash and no debt, which chief financial officer Mark Tayler said put it in a very good position going into fiscal 2023.
"I think there is the potential for this year to be a tricky year, for a lot of retailers," he said.
"We don't know, but there definitely could be some volatility going into this period."
It also puts Temple & Webster in a strong position to grow through potential mergers and acquisitions, he noted.
The company is looking to grow in the areas of trade and commercial, and in home improvement.
Later this year, Temple & Webster will be consolidating multiple offices into a new heritage-listed headquarters in Sydney.
The company has spent $4.2 million on fitting out the 5000sq m premises in St Peters, where its 200-odd employees will initially be working on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The company has another 100 workers in the Philippine capital Manila.
Mr Coulter said the company had been working closely with suppliers and would be introducing new product ranges in the coming months.
"Yes, there's been a bit of inflation, but you'll see some good deals coming over the next few quarters," he said.
At 3.15pm AEST, Temple & Webster shares were up 29.8 per cent to $5.71, their highest level since early May.
