Pepkor flags 20% drop in annual earnings

South Africa’s Pepkor Holdings expects its annual earnings to fall by at least 20% due to the impact of COVID-19 on sales and provisioning, the clothing and furniture retailer said on Thursday.

Headline earnings per share (HEPS) for the year ending September 30 is expected to decrease by at least 20% compared to the 96.8 cents it reported a year ago.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the performance in many areas of the Group, most notably through lost sales and increased provision levels on credit books. This has contributed to the likely impairment of carrying values of goodwill and intangible assets,” the company said.