Electricals retailer Currys, which rejected a takeover offer earlier this year, raised its annual profit forecast by around 10% today after sales returned to growth in both its UK and Ireland unit and in the Nordic region.
Currys said today it expected pretax profit in the year to the end of April to come in at between ££115m and £120m, compared to the £105m previously guided.
The group's upgrade follows its rejection of a takeover bid from US investor Elliott Advisors in February, which it said undervalued its growth potential.
In March, China-based online retailer JD.com, which had also said it was interested in Currys, decided not to make an offer for the UK-based group.
Currys said demand for fridges, washing machines, and computers pushed underlying sales up 2% in the first four months of the year, an improvement on the Christmas period when sales had fallen compared to the previous year.
"Sales are now growing again, margins are benefiting from higher customer adoption of solutions and services, and cost discipline is good," chief executive Alex Baldock said in a statement.
The group's upgraded guidance puts it on track to deliver a result in line with last year's outcome even without the extra income from its Greek business which it sold earlier this year.
