Penny Market boosts profit in Hungary

Penny Market Ltd was able to increase its sales further in 2024, with the discount chain's net sales rising by 6.2% (HUF 30.5 billion) to HUF 518.6 billion in one year. The company attributes this growth to stronger retail purchasing power, successful marketing campaigns, and the opening of new stores.

Expansion also led to an increase in sales-related costs: material costs rose by 6.3% to HUF 440.6 billion.

In line with turnover, the largest item, Cost of Goods Sold (COGS), also increased to HUF 387.2 billion in 2024 from HUF 364.2 billion in 2023. It can therefore be concluded that

Penny's margin has practically stagnated at around 25.4%.

To calculate this, simply subtract the cost of goods sold from the net sales revenue, then divide this figure by the sales revenue. One disadvantage of this method is that services contracted by retailers from suppliers, such as packaging and logistics, can make comparisons difficult, but it still provides a good indication of how each chain operates.

Wages

Personnel expenses also increased by 9.1% to HUF 38.3 billion. On average, Penny employed 4,865 people in 2024, of whom 4,370 worked full-time and 496 part-time.

Profit

The special sectoral tax amounted to HUF 19.3 billion, up from HUF 16.7 billion in 2023.

The operating profit was HUF 7 billion, representing an improvement of 16.7% compared to HUF 6 billion in 2023. Penny's after-tax profit increased to HUF 4.7 billion from HUF 4.3 billion a year earliesr.

The Supervisory Board has decided to transfer this amount to the profit and loss reserve.

Cover photo (for illustration purposes only): Getty Images