JB Hi-Fi has announced the retirement of its CEO, Richard Uechtritz, amid a record six-month profit report released this morning.
In a conference call to investors, the company announced a net profit of $76 million for the six months ending 31 December 2009, representing a 29 percent increase from the same period in the previous year.
Revenue grew 23.16 percent to $1.55 billion from $1.26 billion in 2008 and comparable store sales growth was strong, while JB Hi-Fi's cost of doing business decreased 13.2 percent, the company reported.
"JB has proven to be very resilient throughout the economic downturn which led to low consumer confidence and spend," Uechtritz said.
"We continue to grow our market share as recently opened stores mature, we open new stores, expand our offering and reduce our prices on the back of increased economies of scale and a continued focus on costs," he said.
Uechtritz, who has been with JB Hi-Fi for 10 years, will be replaced by COO Terry Smart. He will rejoin the company as a non-executive director in July or August.
In addition to 15 new stores that were opened in the half-year, JB Hi-Fi expected to open seven more stores in the second half of FY10. It expects to meet its previous prediction that sales will increase 20 percent from the prior financial year, and net profit after tax will increase 24 to 27 percent.
Meanwhile, competitor Harvey Norman announced that sales of $3.27 billion for the same half-year period from its outlets in Australia, New Zealand, Slovenia and Ireland, represented a 4 percent increase from the year prior.
"Sales for the month of January 2010 have met managements' expectations and we remain cautiously optimistic about the next five months despite the positive impact of the cash stimulus payments injected into the economy last year," Harvey Norman's CFO Chris Mentis wrote in an ASX announcement.
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