Asos Surges as Online Retailer Recovers From Warehouse Woes

(Bloomberg) -- Asos Plc shares gained the most in more than four years after the online fashion retailer said it’s recovering from warehouse troubles that were hurting its sales.

• Pretax profit of 33.1 million pounds ($42.3 million) for the full year was down 68% but 4.1% ahead of the average analyst estimate. The company provided no specific guidance for the year ahead.

Key Insights

• While rival Boohoo Group Plc is gaining momentum, Asos has struggled with operational issues. Those are mostly resolved, the company said, though there remains “lots of work to get the business back on track.”
• Chief Executive Officer Nick Beighton said Asos is “back on track,” but the lack of guidance could create doubts. The retailer said only that it’s gotten off to a solid start to the new financial year.
• Asos has been trying to signal that it’s taking the growing pains seriously. Earlier this month, it appointed four new directors, and on Wednesday it bolstered the management team with new roles.

Market Reaction

The shares gained as much as 21% in London, the most since March 2015, making up some lost ground after shedding almost half their value over the previous 12 months as the company issued repeated profit warnings.

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To contact the reporter on this story: Rebecca Smith in London at rsmith599@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sunil Kesur at skesur@bloomberg.net, Eric Pfanner

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