Sales drop 18% for British retailer HMV
MOSCOW. May 4 (Interfax) - HMV Group plc, in which Russian businessman Alexander Mamut owns a stake, ended the 2011-2012 financial year (April 28) with an 18.3% drop in sales.
HMV Retail saw revenue fall 19.4%, while revenue for HMV Live, which manages concert venues, climbed 5.4%.
HMV Group like-for-like sales fell 11.4% in the year, with sales at HMV Retail down 11.7% and HMV Live sales down 0.2%.
In the 17 weeks ending April 28 (January-April 2012), sales fell 18.4%, including a 19.2% slump for the retail business and 3.1% for HMV Live.
Comparable revenue for the group contracted 12.4%, including a 12.9% drop for the retail arm. Comparable sales for HMV Live climbed 2.7%.
HMV Group estimates its net debt for 2011-2012 at GBP 168 million, which is better than its earlier forecast.
Pretax losses for the group amounted to GBP 16 million.
Last year was difficult for the company and that is reflected in its financial results, said HMV Group CEO Simon Fox. Nevertheless, the company forecasts that its measures will enable profit and cash flow results to significantly improve next year, Fox said.
HMV Group hopes in the next 2012-2013 financial year to post a profit thanks to improved relations with key music and film suppliers. HMV forecasts that its pretax profit could reach GBP 10 million, while analysts are predicting a GBP 5 million loss.
Mamut became a HMV shareholder in November 2010 when he bought 3.06% of the company. He then increased his stake to over 6%.