Supermarket Giant Coles Reports $44 Billion Sales Revenue

Supermarket inflation for the year was 1.5 percent, while Coles reported a net profit of $1.08 billion.

A man walks into a Coles supermarket in Albany, Western Australia, on April 11, 2024. Susan Mortimer/The Epoch Times

Australian major supermarket giant Coles has reported a total sales revenue of more than $44 billion (US$28.5 billion) in the 2025 financial year, up 3.6 percent.

On the back of this news, Coles shares have soared 9.24 percent to $22.65 per share at the time of writing.

The supermarket giant reported a net profit after tax (NPAT) of $1.08 billion, up 2.4 percent on the 2024 financial year on a normalised basis (pdf).

Sales revenue from supermarkets alone increased 4.3 percent to nearly $40 billion compared to the 2024 financial year. Liquor revenue rose 1.1 percent to nearly $3.7 billion. Other revenue fell 15.2 percent to $698 million.

Supermarket Inflation

Coles reported total supermarket inflation of 1.5 percent in the 2025 financial year, down from 2.5 percent the previous year.

The supermarket giant said in the fourth quarter of the financial year, this inflation stayed stable at 1.5 percent.

Red meat was a large contributor to this inflation due to supply issues, Coles revealed.

“Whilst inflation eased in the fresh category, fresh produce and red meat continued to be the largest contributors to total supermarkets inflation with supply impacting vegetables and increases in lamb and beef livestock costs,” the company said (pdf).

Elevated cocoa prices and the bird flu also added to the total inflationary pressure. About 1.8 million birds across Australia were culled in 2024 in response to the outbreak.

Coles said cost of living pressures weighed on their liquor market.

“The liquor market remained subdued throughout the year with cost-of-living pressures continuing to influence customer behaviours,” Coles said.

24 Percent Boost in Online Commercial Sales

Coles reported a major growth in online commercial sales, with supermarket eCommerce sales growth of 24.4 percent and liquor eCommerce sales growth of 7.2 percent.

eCommerce sales accounted for $4.5 billion of total sales revenue.

“Sales growth was driven by strong trade plans and digital campaigns, including Black Friday, Coles Fest and the May Mega Sale,” Coles said.

“We introduced a windowless Rapid offer in home delivery and Click & Collect, allowing customers to select an ‘as soon as possible’ option and receiving an estimated time of arrival, and extended our home delivery catchment areas in Melbourne and Sydney.”

Coles revealed tobacco sales had fallen dramatically but only represented a small proportion of their total sales.

“The strength of our volume growth across the portfolio enabled us to successfully absorb a 30 percent decline in tobacco sales in FY25 (normalised), with tobacco sales now representing less than 3 percent of total Supermarket sales down from their peak of more than 8 percent in FY19,” Coles said.

Coles said they had opened two automated customer fulfilment centres early in the 2025 financial year. The company also finished 60 store renewals, opened eight new stores, and closed four stores.

Coles now has a total network of 860 supermarkets.

Key Financial Results And Commentary

Coles reported an underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $4 billion, up 10.7 percent on a normalised basis.

Coles declared a fully franked dividend of 32 cents per share, which will be paid to eligible recipients on Sept. 22.

Coles CEO Leah Weckert said the company maintained a consistent focus on their strategic priorities in the 2025 financial year.

“We were clear that value, quality, and availability remained important to our customers. In addition, continuing to manage loss and delivering on our Simplify and Save to Invest commitments remained key to achieving our financial objectives,” Weckert said.

Coles reported their growth figures on a normalised basis, which means they excluded the impact of the 53rd reporting week in the 2024 financial year for comparison purposes.

Future Outlook

Coles revealed that in the first eight weeks of the 2026 financial year, sales revenue had risen by 4.9 percent. The company’s eCommerce sales have also “continued to benefit” from their investments.

In liquor, sales revenue growth was flat in the first eight weeks of the 2026 financial year. The company expects to open 12 new stores, close two, and renew 70 stores.

CEO Weckert said, “As we enter FY26, we are again clear on the priorities for the year ahead.”

Woolworths is due to report financial results on Aug. 27.