X5 lowers 2012 revenue growth forecast from 15% to 7%-9%
MOSCOW. Oct 11 (Interfax) - X5 Retail Group, the largest retail company in Russia by sales volume, has lowered its forecast for this year's revenue growth from 15% to 7%-9% in rubles, the company's CFO Kieran Balfe said during a Thursday telephone conference.
Balfe mentioned the possibility of X5's revenue growth falling below the announced 15% during an earlier telephone conference in August. However, the company did not officially adjust its forecast at the time.
In July, X5 had already lowered its forecast for 2012 revenue growth from 15%-20% to 15%.
On Thursday, X5 published its operational results for January-September 2012, which fell below market expectations. The retailer boosted its revenue by just 8% to 356.2 billion rubles. Q3 sales climbed 10.4% to 115.9 billion rubles, roughly on par with Q2 growth (9.8%). Meanwhile, analysts had expected the company to accomplish more substantial growth; according to a consensus forecast compiled by Interfax, they proposed more than 12% growth.
X5 operates several retail formats: the soft discounter chain under the Pyaterochka brand, the supermarket chain under the Perekrestok brand, the hypermarket chain under the Karusel brand, the online retail channel under E5.ru brand and convenience stores under various brands. As of September 30, the company was managing 3,472 stores.
