Look ahead to FTSE 350, other companies reporting & economic events from 27-31 May 2024

• Pets at Home results expected to be in line with previously downgraded guidance.
• Can Salesforce reaccelerate top-line growth over the coming year?
• Dr Martens looks to fix its US footprint.

Pets at Home, Full Year Results, Wednesday 29 May
Guy Lawson-Johns, equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown 
“Pets at Home has shown that it isn’t immune to a challenging consumer environment. Downgraded profit guidance following a weak third quarter didn’t come as much of a surprise to investors, as inflationary pressures caused consumers to rein in their spending on more lucrative pet accessories.

Having largely shaken off the disappointment of slowing retail growth, investors will be hoping to be rewarded for their patience. In addition to looking for underlying profit before tax (PBT) of £132mn, markets will be eagerly awaiting forward-looking guidance. Utilising customer data insights and growing its online presence offer significant opportunities for growth, but these efforts don’t come cheap. Analysts are mindful that the group’s costs are growing and will be paying close attention to how investments will be sustainably funded.”

Salesforce, Q1 Results, Wednesday 29 May

Matt Britzman, equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown 

“After a year of getting fit, Salesforce is a leaner beast ahead of first-quarter earnings. Margin progression last year was impressive and guidance points to further improvements over the coming year. But, without as many cost-cutting levers to pull, margin growth will need to come organically.

The macro-environment looks to have stabilised, and investors will now be looking for signs that subscription revenue growth can reaccelerate from the current c.10% guidance. AI will play a major part in that, and Salesforce is well-positioned to benefit given the amount of time customers spend on Slack, or its various other cloud products. But, with its Copilot tool still in beta mode and no benefit built into guidance for the coming year, it may take some time for AI to meaningfully drive top-line growth.”

Dr. Martens, Full Year Results, Thursday 30 May
Derren Nathan, head of equity research, Hargreaves Lansdown 
“Dr. Martens’ shareholders are nursing heavy losses and weakness in the US, its biggest market, continues to be a concern. The recent trading update suggests that we shouldn’t see too much divergence from consensus forecasts which expect revenue to fall by 11%, to under £0.9bn. That’s largely driven by expected weakness in the wholesale division. Analysts are looking for operating profit of £125mn, which would mark a fall of 34%.

The iconic bootmaker has outlined several challenges for this year. It’s anticipating another double-digit decline in US wholesale revenue. The decision to hold back on price increases means the company will be unable to offset inflation. Dr. Martens sees a potential two-thirds fall in pre-tax profits as the worst-case scenario but has not ruled out the possibility of an improvement. Markets will be watching out for further guidance.”

Among those currently scheduled to release results next week:

*Events on which HL will be updating investors.