The clothing chain Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) is recovering from the strains of the corona pandemic at an increasing pace. In the first business quarter to the end of February, the company increased sales by 23 percent to a good 49 billion Swedish crowns (around 4.65 billion euros), as announced on Tuesday in Stockholm. In the last quarter, the increase was even lower at eight percent. The stock fell 4 percent in early trading.
The company developed roughly as expected, wrote analyst Georgina Johanan in a first reaction. However, she had hoped for more details on the consequences of the closure of Russian activities in terms of profitability.
The fashion chain initially did not provide any information on the outlook for the current quarter. H&M intends to present the full quarterly report on March 31.
Ambitious goals by 2030
With a view to the expected ebb of the pandemic, H&M had recently set itself ambitious goals. The company wants to double its 2021 sales by 2030 at the latest. The Swedes also want to achieve an operating margin of ten percent by 2024 at the latest. The growth is to be supported by the expansion of the online business and entry into new markets. (dpa)