Ocado Group, the online grocery and automation technology group, reported revenue of £1,037m for the 26 weeks to 31 May, up 54% year-on-year, though the increase was driven almost entirely by £354m of non-recurring termination fees from Kroger and Sobeys closing four US and Canadian warehouses.
Stripping out those closure impacts, revenue rose just 1% to £684m, with underlying Technology Solutions adjusted EBITDA falling to £60m from £73m a year earlier.
Ocado Retail, the 50-50 joint venture with Marks & Spencer reported as an associate, fared better, with revenue up 15% to £1.76bn and a swing to a £12m adjusted pre-tax profit from a £17m loss.
Group net debt fell by £79m to £969.5m, helped by the Kroger and Sobeys cash receipts, while liquidity stood at £1.1bn including cash of £765m and an undrawn £300m revolving credit facility.
Chief executive Tim Steiner said the company had seen "accelerating international volume growth, strong commercial momentum, improved organisational efficiency, and rigorous cost discipline" in the first half, pointing to a new partnership with Asda to build its UK online business, targeted to go live in FY27.
Ocado maintained its FY26 guidance: Technology Solutions revenue of around £500m excluding closure impacts, adjusted EBITDA margin of about 30% in that division, Logistics revenue growth in the high mid-single digits, and capital expenditure of around £250m.
The company confirmed it remains on track to turn cash flow positive in the second half of FY26, with a full-year underlying cash outflow excluding closure fees of around £200m, before turning cash flow positive for the full year in FY27.
Ocado will report full-year results on 25 February 2027.
