Punch Taverns toasts the heatwave

Punch Taverns, which operates more than 6,000 pubs in the UK, reported that like-for-like sales at its managed pubs rose 7.3 per cent in the 12 weeks to May 28, an improvement on the 4.9 per cent rise over the previous half-year.

The group said the performance was partly due to ongoing investment in its pubs, which has seen it refurbish 160 sites in the past 40 weeks, while the hot weather in March and April “undoubtedly helped trading”.

Like-for-like net income at its leased pubs was down 3.3 per cent but this was also better than the previous half-year, when it dropped 7 per cent.

The group recently announced plans to demerge its 950-strong Spirit managed pub division from the rest of the business to create two listed companies by the end of the summer.

The plans, which have been devised by chief executive Ian Dyson, who joined from Marks & Spencer last year, will leave Punch with some 5,200 leased and tenanted pubs, in which landlords order their supplies from the company.

It has identified some 3,000 of these as ‘core’ pubs and the rest will be closed at the rate of about 500 a year.

The ongoing disposals of its underperforming pubs helped average net income per pub in the leased division to rise 1.3 per cent in the past 40 weeks.

The company said it is on track to meet its full-year expectations despite the challenging consumer environment.