Woolies takes a 93 per cent plunge as writedowns slash profits to just $108m
Woolworths made just $108 million in profit in 2023/24, down 93.3 per cent from the $1.7 billion the year before, after $1.6 billion in writedowns hurt its bottom line.
Woolworths says food prices have risen by more than 7 per cent in the past quarter. (Photo: ABC)
Excluding the impairments the supermarket giant made $1.7 billion in net profit for the 53 weeks to June 30, down 0.6 per cent from the year before on a normalised basis.
Woolworths in January recorded a $NZ1.6 billion ($A1.5 billion) non-cash impairment against the $NZ2.3 billion ($A2.1 billion) in goodwill on its balance sheets stemming from its 2005 acquisition of Foodland’s New Zealand.
It also record a $209 million loss on its 9.1 per cent stake in alcohol retailer Endeavour Group after changing how it accounts for that investment.
Woolworths recorded $67.9 billion in sales for 2023/24, up 3.7 per cent from the previous year after adjusting for the fact that it was slightly shorter.
Chief executive Brad Banducci said the inflation in its food business and Big W moderated significantly in the second half, with supermarket food prices dropping 0.2 per cent in the third quarter and 0.6 per cent in the fourth.
Woolworths declared a 40 cent per share special dividend and a final dividend of 57 cents, down one cent from last year. For the full year Woolworths will pay out $1.44 in dividends, up 38.5 per cent from 2022/23.
