Shares take a dive at downbeat Carpetright

Carpetright shares slumped today after the group's second downbeat note to the City in two months.

Lord Harris of Peckham, the chairman and chief executive, said: "UK market conditions have continued to be difficult. Since our last trading update on March 23, sales have been slightly below expectations and we anticipate the year ahead to remain challenging."

That follows a profit warning a few weeks ago that saw analysts slash forecasts.

Today they were sanguine, with KBC Peel Hunt insisting the business is "well-placed to benefit from recovery".

Investors seemed to take a different view, marking the shares down 50p to 838p.

In the 12 weeks to April 24, like-for-like sales rose just 1.5%. Carpetright is now expected to make profits for the year of between £27 million and £35 million — a wide range which indicates how difficult it is to measure whether consumer confidence has truly returned or not.

UBS is less bullish than rivals, saying the shares are a sell all the way down to 780p.

Carpetright, which is the biggest carpet and floor coverings retailer in Europe, has closed eight of its worst-performing stores recently, leaving it with 703.

The company is also quitting some countries, notably Poland, altogether.