DAVY VIEW

Travis Perkins has indicated that it is on track to demerge Wickes, which is scheduled for Q2 2020. Wickes had been identified as non-core a year ago and hence the update comes as no surprise. The accompanying short presentation positions Wickes as a price leader with an offering that combines digital capability and a 235-store physical estate. A Capital Markets Day on January 29th should provide further insight. The Travis Perkins share price has done very well recently (as has Howdens and Grafton). It is up almost 20% in the past three months and has risen by almost 50% in the past year. That said, this has only taken the share back to where it was in early 2018.