Fashion retail company JD Sports’ has lowered its full-year pre-tax profit forecast for FY24 to a range between $1,195 million and $1,295 million. Made amidst challenging retail environment, this decline is a result of the softer sales registered by the company in Oct’24 despite strong sales recorded in Aug’24 and Sep’24.

In Q3, FY24, JD Sports reported a 0.3 per cent decline in like-for-like (LFL) sales. However, the company’s year-to-date LFL sales increased by 0.5 per cent increase. Spurred by a growth in the company’s footwear sales, JD Sport’s physical sales outpaced its online sales during the quarter. The company’s organic sales rose by 5.4 per cent Q-o-Q while they increased by 6.1 per cent Y-o-Y.

Increased promotional activity, unseasonable weather and cautious consumer sentiment in key markets, especially in North America and the UK led to stable sales in Oct’24, notes Regis Schultz, CEO. Despite these challenges, the company’s gross margin for the period improved by 0.3 percentage points to reach 48.1 per cent.

Pursuing its expansion strategy, JD Sports opened 79 new stores during Q3, FY24 bringing the total to 181 new stores for the year. By the end of Q3, the company operated 4,541 stores globally, including recent acquisitions.