Woolworths profit falls 16.7% in 1H FY17

Company News

by David Chau

Woolworths (ASX:WOW) has slashed its interim dividend by almost 23% to 34cps for 1H FY17. This is lowest interim dividend since 2006.

Australia’s largest supermarket posted a lower profit during the first half due to intense price competition with Coles and Aldi supermarkets.

Over the last year, Woolworths has been reducing margins and selling its non-core assets – such as the sale of 527 service stations to BP . Last year, Woolworths also closed its Masters home improvement chain, and incurred $2.7 billion in write-offs.

Woolworth’s net profit for the first half was down 16.7% to $785.7 million. However, its sales revenue rose 2.6% to $29.1 billion.

The company says it’s expecting further progress in the second half as it looks to restore sustainable growth but adds that there is still “a long way to go”.

Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter?

Would you like to receive our daily news to your inbox?