Domino’s Pizza switches to ‘contact-free delivery’ but suspends dividend payments
Domino’s Pizza Group has announced it will continue to trade by providing “contact-free delivery” but has stopped its collection service due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Britain’s biggest pizza delivery firm said it had seen increased demand and would now only be making contactless deliveries amid the coronavirus crisis.
In a trading update released this morning, Domino’s said the increased number of deliveries it has seen in the UK is “more than offsetting” the loss of its collection service, which typically provides 20 per cent of its sales.
The FTSE 250 firm said it has had to hire more delivery drivers with an increase in sales in the UK and Ireland over the last week.
It added that sales for the first three months of the year had been “in line” with expectations.
However, Domino’s has suspended its final dividend payment of 5.56p that was announced as part of the company’s full year results on 5 March.
The group said “the volatility of delivery sales” and “an uncertain outlook” had required to take “a cautious and prudent approach”.
It said its performance and liquidity position remained strong and that the decision would be reviewed in the coming months.
The firm said its current net debt position is “slightly lower” than the £232m reported at the end of 2019.