Woolworths Group Stock Earnings Reports

Woolworths Group reported a weaker-than-expected FY25 driven by lower profitability in Australian Food (impacted by industrial action, wage and cost inflation, and stock loss) and BIG W, while complementary businesses (eComX, Cartology, New Zealand, PFD/Petstock/CFD) performed strongly. Normalised group sales rose 3.6% to $69.1bn but group EBIT before significant items fell ~12.6% to ~$2.8bn (approximately -8% on a further-normalised basis excluding one-offs). Management has initiated an operational reset: simplifying the leadership structure (creating Woolworths Retail), cost and productivity programs targeting $400m above-store savings by end-2025 calendar year, range optimisation, a lower-shelf pricing program (initial >700 lines, >$100m annualised price investment in FY26), and supply-chain investments (new automated CFCs and distribution centres). Significant one-off items in FY25 totalled $569m (including a $346m impairment of BIG W, MyDeal closure costs and redundancies). Management expects FY26 to be a transitional year with an improved result driven by Australian Food (guidance: mid- to high-single-digit reported EBIT growth for Australian Food), recovery in New Zealand, and a return to profitability for BIG W. Operating CapEx is expected to be ~A$2.0bn in FY26. The board declared a final dividend of A$0.45 (total ordinary dividend A$0.84; payout ratio ~74.1%). Net debt/EBITDA remained within target (2.8x). Management’s medium-term ambition: mid- to high-single-digit EBIT growth, strong free cash flow, a 70–75% payout ratio and double-digit total shareholder return (TSR) over time.