In morning trade the Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) share price has been a strong performer following the release of a trading update ahead of its appearance at the Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) Australia Conference.
At the time of writing the retail group's shares are up 6% to $8.90.
What was in the trading update?
Super Retail has built on its solid first half performance with further strong growth during the first 17 weeks of the second half.
According to the release, all four of the company's businesses have achieved like for like sales growth over the period.
The Supercheap Auto business has achieved like for like sales growth of 4.2% so far in the second half. This has brought total sales growth to 3.6% year to date and like for like sales growth to 2.7% year to date.
The Rebel business has also performed well, achieving like for like sales growth of 4% in the second half. This lifted its total sales growth to 4.5% year to date and like for like sales growth to 3.5% year to date.
The BCF business has been a strong performer in the second half, growing its like for likes sales by 5.3%. This lifted its year to date total sales growth to 3.6% and like for like growth to 3.3% year to date.
Finally, the Macpac business has underperformed the others on a like for like basis (2% growth), but is trading in line with management's expectations. Total sales growth year to date stands at 17.8% and like for like sales growth is now at 7.8% year to date.
Super Retail's CEO, Anthony Heraghty, appeared to be pleased with the company's performance.
He said "Our trading performance is encouraging in a tough environment and confirms the underlying strength of our business and our brands. Our extensive network of stores, sector-leading brands, loyal customer base and expanding e-commerce capability form a powerful combination that sets us apart from existing competitors and new entrants to the retail sector in Australia and New Zealand."
He added: "We will continue to enhance our omni-retail channels to provide our customers with multiple touchpoints to engage with our businesses and leverage further growth for the Group. Our strong customer base presents significant opportunities to capitalise on the potential of our brands."
Should you invest?
I thought this was a strong update from the retail group and can't say I'm surprised to see its shares storm higher this morning.
Overall, despite this share price gain, I still see a lot of value in Super Retail's shares and would class them as a buy along with fellow retailer Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1).
