B&M Shares Jump 15% as UK Turnaround Gains Traction

B&M's share price rose more than 15% in early-morning trading after the value retailer reported group revenue up 3.6% to £2.85bn for the 26 weeks ending 26 September 2026 — a figure investors read as evidence that the company's investment is finally taking hold.

The numbers come with an asterisk, as they usually do. Emily Scott, retail analyst at GlobalData, noted that the first half was "fueled by solid sales in France" while a weak UK first quarter dragged on momentum, with UK like-for-like sales down 2.3% in Q1. That made the domestic second quarter the real story: UK l-f-l sales grew 3.2%, and gross margin recovered 0.74 percentage points. In Scott's words, that's "the clearest sign yet that the domestic turnaround is gaining traction."

What does the profit picture look like?

Group adjusted profit before tax rose 16.6% to £121m in the first half, ahead of market forecasts. Like-for-like sales grew across the portfolio: France was up 5.9% and Heron Foods, B&M's convenience arm, gained 2.9%. For the full 2026/27 financial year, B&M has guided adjusted profit before tax at £280m–£330m.

Scott, though, isn't ready to call it a win. "It is still too early to declare victory: H1 UK l-f-l growth was just 0.4%, and an extended garden season flattered Q2," she said. A longer-than-usual gardening season is the kind of tailwind that doesn't repeat. Half-year UK growth of 0.4% against a 3.2% second quarter tells you most of the heavy lifting came in three months.

The challenge, as Scott frames it, is straightforward: "to prove that Q2 marked the start of a sustained recovery rather than a temporary bounce."

Which categories drove the UK recovery?

General merchandise led it. FMCG, which lagged in Q1 after B&M prioritised price cuts, improved in Q2 and finished the quarter flat — hardly a triumph, but a step in the right direction for a category operating in what Scott calls "an intensely competitive UK grocery market."

FMCG is the category to watch, and B&M has staffed accordingly. Incoming Chief Financial Officer Atheeq Akbar, who starts in January 2027, "brings valuable grocery experience to that challenge," Scott said.

What comes next: Back to B&M Basics, Phase 2

Attention is shifting to Phase 2 of the Back to B&M Basics strategy. Phase 1 covered pricing, availability and range. Phase 2 moves on to the customer experience and the productivity of the UK estate — a polite way of saying the chain needs its existing stores to work harder.

Concretely, B&M is slowing UK expansion in FY2026/27 and redirecting spend toward refitting existing stores and trialling its new B&M 2.0 format. Early trading at the B&M 2.0 concept store in Wigan, which has a more intuitive flow and a stronger focus on higher-margin general merchandise, has been encouraging, according to GlobalData.

Scott's recommendation is blunt: "B&M should prioritise store refits over new UK openings, applying the insights from B&M 2.0, as an improved store experience will help convert browsers into customers." The payoff could be meaningful in the current climate — the "new cleaner, easier-to-shop format should help renew interest among shoppers trading down as cost-of-living pressures persist," she said.

Can B&M hold it together through the Golden Quarter?

Early Golden Quarter trading has been positive across all three businesses — UK B&M, France and Heron Foods — and B&M enters its most important selling season in better shape than a year ago. That's the analyst's verdict, and the share price suggests the market agrees.

But the Golden Quarter earned its name. Half of the retailer's proof still sits in front of it: a 0.4% half-year UK l-f-l figure, a flattered Q2, and a grocery category where the competition doesn't take quarters off. If Q2 was a bounce, the next ten weeks will say so. If it was a turn, B&M's guidance of £280m–£330m in full-year adjusted pre-tax profit starts looking conservative rather than ambitious.