LONDON, June 18, 2026, 10:14 BST
- Tesco dropped 2.9% to 443.3 pence at the open in London, while the FTSE 100 slipped 0.6%.
- Group like-for-like sales were up 1.0% to £16.83 billion. UK growth cooled to 1.8%. Online sales climbed 8.9%.
- Tesco kept its full-year adjusted operating profit guidance unchanged at £3.0 billion to £3.3 billion.
Tesco shares sat around 445 pence, falling roughly 2.6% on Thursday. First-quarter UK sales growth missed market estimates. The supermarket held its full-year profit guidance steady.
Tesco’s miss is in focus after a year of market share gains put pressure on every trading update. Analysts were looking for UK like-for-like sales growth of roughly 2.3%. A year earlier, same-quarter growth came in at 5.1%—that was boosted by good weather and problems at Marks & Spencer and the Co-op.
Chief Executive Ken Murphy called the gains from last year “truly exceptional” and warned about putting too much weight on just one quarter’s numbers. Charles Stanley’s chief investment commentator Garry White said keeping guidance unchanged “should reassure investors” over Tesco’s strategy on profit and competition. Reuters
Group like-for-like sales were up 1.0% in the 13 weeks to May 30. UK sales climbed 1.8% to £12.60 billion. Ireland sales rose 3.3%. Central Europe added 0.8%.
UK food sales rose 2.6%. Fresh food was up 3.6%, and the premium Finest range jumped 9%. Online grew 8.9%. Tesco put out or upgraded 520-plus products and took its Aldi Price Match program into more than 2,000 Express convenience stores. “We remain focused on giving customers the very best combination of price, quality and service,” Murphy said. The Guardian
Booker stayed soft. Like-for-like sales in the wholesale unit dropped 3.2%. Core retail slipped 1.5%. Catering sales lost 3.3%. Tesco said dropping a lower-margin national account pulled about two percentage points from core retail growth.
Tesco is guiding for adjusted operating profit between £3.0 billion and £3.3 billion this year. That puts the range either side of last year’s £3.15 billion. The company also sees free cash flow coming in between £1.5 billion and £2.0 billion. Tesco said it had finished £341 million of its £750 million share buyback by the end of trading on Wednesday.
Tesco is still well ahead in the UK grocery market, with a 28.2% share in the 12 weeks to May 17, according to Worldpanel. Sainsbury’s had 15.2%. Lidl set a new high at 8.6%, edging past Morrisons at 8.3%.
The risk is weaker household confidence, rising energy and supply costs tied to Middle East tensions, and heavier sector price cuts could push Tesco to spend more to protect its share. If Booker keeps falling, profit could end up near the low end of guidance even if main grocery sales stay positive.
Tesco is set to report first-half numbers on October 8, giving investors a clearer picture on margins, cash flow, and market share.
