Kingfisher, the parent company of B&Q, Screwfix and other retail brands, has raised its profit forecast for the 2026 financial year, citing cost savings and operational performance, even as it points to softening trading conditions in the UK and Poland.

The home improvement group now expects adjusted pre-tax profit for the year ending 31 January 2026 to be between £540m and £570m ($707.7m to $747m).

This represents an upgrade from its previous guidance, which was for a result at the top end of a £480m to £540m range.

The retailer’s projection for free cash flow remains unchanged at £480m to £520m.

For the third quarter (Q3) to 31 October 2025, Kingfisher reported total group sales of £3.25bn, an increase of 1% on a reported basis and 0.9% on a like-for-like basis at constant currency.

In the UK and Ireland, where B&Q and Screwfix are its principal banners, sales rose 4.2% to £1.68bn on a reported basis.

In France, where it trades under the Castorama and Brico Dépôt brands, revenue edged up 0.7% to £974m. Sales in Poland advanced 2.9% to £481m.

In contrast, turnover in Kingfisher’s other international operations fell 33.5% to £112m.

Kingfisher CEO Thierry Garnier stated: “We delivered another quarter of high quality, volume-led growth, driven by our group strategic initiatives in e-commerce and trade and by our performance in core and big-ticket categories. B&Q, Screwfix and Iberia continue to strongly outperform their markets. Our performance to date and progress in our strategic initiatives give us the confidence to upgrade our full year profit guidance.

“As we look ahead, we are committed to driving shareholder returns through the consistent execution of our strategic priorities and by being disciplined on margin and costs.”