The Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) share price is charging higher today.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) supermarket giant closed yesterday trading for $19.69. In morning trade on Thursday, shares are changing hands for $20.56 apiece, up 4.4%.
For some context, the ASX 200 is up 0.3% at this same time.
This outperformance follows the release of Coles' half-year results for the six months to 31 December (H1 FY 2025).
Here are the highlights.
The 3.7% year-on-year lift in half-year group sales revenue was spurred by a 4.3% increase in Supermarkets sales revenue, with Liquor sales revenue growing at a slower 0.8%.
The Coles share price could also be getting some added support today, with the company reporting eCommerce sales growth of 22.6% in its Supermarkets segment and 9.2% in its Liquor business.
The ASX 200 supermarket's financing costs increased by $58 million to $271 million for the six-month period.
In October, Coles announced an agreement with Witron to invest $880 million to develop a new ambient Automated Distribution Centre (ADC) in Truganina, Victoria.
During the half, Coles completed 25 store renewals, opened three new stores and closed one store, taking the total network to 858 supermarkets.
Commenting on the results boosting the Coles share price today, CEO Leah Weckert said:
We have had a strong focus on value, fresh quality and availability which has supported volume-led growth in Supermarkets during the half…
We made good progress on our Simplify and Save to Invest target, delivering $157 million in cost savings, allowing us to offset continued cost inflation and invest in our customer proposition, whilst delivering returns for the many Australians who are shareholders.
Coles chairman James Graham added:
It was particularly pleasing to see benefits realised from our capital investments in automation, data and technology which allowed us to respond to the spikes in demand experienced during the half, in a way that would not have been possible previously.
Looking at what could impact the Coles share price in the months ahead, the company reported that in the first seven weeks of the third quarter (Q3 FY 2025), its Supermarkets sales revenue grew by 3.4% compared to the same period last year.
Coles Liquor segment posted sales revenue growth of 3.8%.
"Our focus in the second half remains on providing a compelling customer value proposition, making further progress on improving our fresh offer and continuing to tailor our ranges to make sure we have the right products in the right stores to cater for local customer preferences," Weckert said.
With today's intraday gains factored in, the Coles share price is up 23% since this time last year, not including dividends.
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