Discount retailer B&M warns on profit, says CEO to retire

(Reuters) - Discount retailer B&M issued a profit warning on Monday blaming uncertain economic conditions, and said CEO Alex Russo would retire after two and a half years in the role.

Shares in the company, which sells everything from hats and heaters to toys and food, fell 5% in early trading as analysts said Russo's departure was unsurprising.

B&M now projects 2025 adjusted core earnings between 605 million pounds and 625 million pounds ($766 million to $792 million), compared with 620 million pounds to 650 million pounds expected earlier.

The downgrade, just weeks after B&M narrowed its earlier profit view, reflects "the current trading performance of the business, an uncertain economic outlook and the potential impact of exchange rate volatility on the valuation of our stock and creditor balances," it said.

Most of Britain's major retailers such as M&S and Next have warned of a tough year ahead with shoppers seen staying away amid rising inflation, and as the government's proposed employer tax increases saddles companies with higher costs.

B&M, which operates more than 1,100 stores across the UK and France under its eponymous brand and Heron Foods, has looked to increase the number of items it sells and leaned on competitive pricing to counter consumer caution.

The company said Russo, who has held the top job since September 2022 and was earlier its finance chief, would retire at the end of April. B&M shares have gained about 6.5% during his tenure, but lost nearly a third of their value last year.

Jefferies analysts said the change in CEO was of "limited surprise", and noted that the profit warning indicated that an improved December/January like-for-like trend that B&M highlighted last month had not been sustained.

(Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Hugh Lawson)