Shepherd Neame (LSE:SHEP), Britain's oldest brewer and owner of pubs across Kent, London and the South East, said full-year profit for the 52 weeks to 27 June is in line with expectations.
Retail like-for-like sales rose 3.8% over the period, while tenanted like-for-like pub income grew 2.7%.
Total beer volume fell 5.4% and own beer volume dropped 9.6%, though own beer volumes within the Retail and Tenanted estates rose 3.5% and 5.1% respectively.
Chief executive Jonathan Neame said trading has continued strongly into the new financial year, with Retail like-for-like sales up 4.3% in the three weeks to 18 July, "boosted by the weather" in early July.
Alongside the update, chairman Richard Oldfield will retire after the AGM on 30 October, ending six years as chairman and ten as a director.
Jonathan Neame will subsequently become Executive Chairman, and chief financial officer Mark Rider will step up to Managing Director from the same date, with a new finance director expected by the end of the 2027 financial year. Meanwhile, Graham Turner, former chairman of The Liberation Group and ex-CEO of Tragus Group and The Unique Pub Company, joins the board as a non-executive director with immediate effect.
Oldfield said continuity between Neame and Rider "has served the company well in its 300-year history".
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Shepherd Neame reported full-year profit in line with expectations, with retail like-for-like sales up 3.8% and tenanted pub income up 2.7% over the 52 weeks to 27 June. The company announced a leadership succession: chairman Richard Oldfield will retire after the October AGM, with CEO Jonathan Neame becoming Executive Chairman and CFO Mark Rider stepping up to Managing Director, while Graham Turner joins as a non-executive director.
The results meet guidance with modest operational momentum (retail sales accelerating to 4.3% in early July), but the leadership transition—while orderly and internally sourced—introduces execution risk during a period when own beer volumes remain under pressure (down 9.6% overall, despite growth within the pub estates).
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