Coles Delivers FY26 as Reporting Week Kicks Off | It’s On Sale Daily Brief, 25 August 2026

Neil Fairhead

CEO, It’s On Sale

Tuesday morning briefing for Australian shoppers. This is the biggest reporting week of the Australian retail year, and Coles Group opens the batting today at 8am AEST with the media call at 9:15am. Consensus is for group sales of about 45.6 billion dollars, an underlying profit of 1.22 billion, and a full year dividend of about 77 cents. Woolworths Group follows before market open Wednesday, and Wesfarmers with the Bunnings, Kmart, Officeworks, Priceline and Target numbers on Thursday. Bapcor (Autobarn, Burson, Midas) is in the news for the wrong reasons: shares down 83 per cent since April 2024 and a newly appointed CEO who stepped down the day before starting. Amazon remains in the Federal Court over Prime Video ads. And today s live Top 5 sale scan pulls up Rebel Sport at 85 per cent off winter sport gear as the top pick of the day.

Coles Reports FY26 This Morning: The Consumer Read on Day One

Coles Group hands down its FY26 full year result this morning, with the media conference call at 9:15am AEST and the analyst briefing at 10am, per the Medianet media alert. Consensus per IG Australia s Coles FY26 preview is group sales around 45.63 billion dollars (up about 2.9 per cent), EBIT around 2.30 billion (up about 8.9 per cent), underlying NPAT around 1.22 billion (up about 13 per cent), earnings per share of about 92.2 cents, and a full year dividend of about 77.1 cents per share (up about 11.7 per cent on FY25 s 69 cent payout).

Today s numbers matter to the household budget in three ways. First, the FY27 trading update: analysts and shoppers alike will watch whether Coles supermarkets kept the plus 4 per cent revenue momentum from the 3Q26 update, per Investing.com s 3Q26 transcript. Second, the dividend payout signals how much the board still wants to hand back to shareholders versus reinvesting into stores, and higher payout ratios historically translate into more aggressive Flybuys promotional cycles in H1 the following year. Third, e commerce grew 27 per cent at half year: watch whether the growth held, because that is the segment where Coles has been running its sharpest online only pricing (Try It Free and Half Price online lines). Coles stock closed at 22 dollars 64 on Monday, down 0.8 per cent, so the market is guarded. The read for shoppers is simple: if Coles beats consensus, expect more aggressive Woolworths counter promotions from Wednesday afternoon; if Coles misses, expect defensive discounting through OnePass and Everyday Rewards to keep the volume up.

Bapcor s Problem: 83 Per Cent Share Fall and a CEO Who Never Started

Sue Lannin at ABC News flags Bapcor (parent of Autobarn, Burson Auto Parts, Midas and Precision Automotive Equipment) as the automotive retail story to watch. Shares are down 83 per cent since April 2024, and newly appointed CEO Paul Dumbrell resigned for personal reasons the day before his scheduled start, per the ABC live blog. Chair Margie Haseltine said developments since that appointment have not been favourable in terms of value generation, and independent asset acquisition ratings agency Morningstar has cut its fair value estimate.

The consumer angle for Australian households: Autobarn, Burson and Midas are the automotive back end that keeps utes and family cars on the road. Under pressure, listed retailers typically respond with sharper front of shop promotions on high frequency items (car batteries, oil changes, brake pads, wiper blades), because those pull traffic in without impacting the workshop labour margin. That means the next six to eight weeks are usually a good window for scheduled servicing and battery swaps at Autobarn or Midas franchisees, particularly if you are Coles Flybuys linked (Autobarn is a Flybuys partner) or a member of the AutoClub loyalty program. If you have been putting off a service or a tyre replacement, keep watch on the Autobarn and Midas apps for boosted points offers through September.

Amazon Prime Video Case Still Live: What Australian Subscribers Should Do

The ACCC v Amazon Australia Federal Court proceeding (VID702 of 2026) continues, with the regulator targeting five unfair contract terms said to have been used to add ads to Prime Video and charge an extra 2 dollars 99 a month between November 2023 and August 2025. Sarah Thompson and Anthony Macdonald at the AFR report ACCC chair Gina Cass Gottlieb said Amazon left subscribers with no choice but to pay more to maintain the service they had originally signed up for. Reuters reported on 14 August that Amazon has reinstated binding arbitration in the US to prevent class actions in that market, per Blake Brittain at Reuters.

The regulator is seeking penalties, declarations and refunds on behalf of more than one million Australian annual Prime subscribers affected between November 2023 and August 2025. If you had an Amazon Prime annual subscription in place during that window and you paid the ad free upcharge, keep the receipts. Any eventual refund order will depend on Amazon being able to identify the affected accounts, and the paper trail is on your side. Independent Australian owned retailers do not carry that risk: it is one of the reasons every store featured in today s Top 5, and every store in our Today s Sales pool, is Australian owned with local fulfilment.

Retail Insolvencies: Softer in July, But FY26 Total Still Above FY25

ASIC s July 2026 industry data shows retail first time insolvency appointments fell to 68, down from 91 in July 2025 and below the 78 recorded in July 2024, per Ragtrader. That is the sixth straight month of year on year decline for the retail category. But Ragtrader s FY26 wrap confirms the full year total sat at 875 collapses, still ahead of FY25 s 871. Recent creditors voluntary liquidations include Yuki Boutique (three Victorian stores across Glen, Chadstone and QV), announced 13 August 2026 through InsolvencyRadar s retail feed.

For an Australian household the practical read is protective, not panicked. If you hold unspent gift cards or store credit at any mid market retailer that has looked wobbly, spend them this month while the trading environment is loosening. If you have a deposit sitting on furniture, bedding or a made to order piece, check the retailer s ASIC status through the ABN Lookup tool at abr.business.gov.au. Voluntary administration freezes creditor claims while a rescue is negotiated, and consumer deposits are usually returned last. The upside is that with 68 collapses in July versus 91 the year before, and the Coles, Woolworths and Wesfarmers balance sheets in strong shape, the listed majors are competing hard for the discretionary dollar. That is why today s Top 5 opens with an 85 per cent off Rebel Sport headline: Rebel is inside Super Retail Group, which reported softer profit last week and is pushing hard on end of winter clearance to defend market share ahead of spring.

Two Speed Shopper: August Set for a 40 Billion Dollar First

Roy Morgan is forecasting August 2026 retail turnover of 40.0 billion dollars, the first ever 40 billion dollar retail month, up 6.0 per cent year on year. Household Goods leads at plus 8.8 per cent, Food (supermarkets) is projected at 15.6 billion, up 4.6 per cent, and Clothing, Footwear and Personal Accessories is projected to hit 3.34 billion, up 3.5 per cent. Elias Visontay at The Guardian unpacks the behavioural shift underneath: Australians are procrastinating couches and white goods, but prioritising high protein food, home coffee machines and sports gear.

Translated into the shopping list: the household budget is still moving, it is just moving into different categories than 12 months ago. Coffee capsules, protein powder, gym gear, sports equipment and running shoes are the strong spend, and that is exactly why today s Top 5 opens with Rebel Sport at up to 85 per cent off end of winter stock, followed by an 82 per cent off Kick Push Skate clearance for the kids. Handbags and luggage from Strandbags at 50 per cent off fits the return of Australians travelling domestically for the September school holidays. Lee Mathews at 40 per cent off covers wedding guest and workwear silks for the spring calendar. And Koala at 30 per cent off gives the household one path back into big ticket bedding without waiting until Black Friday. Every store is Australian owned with local fulfilment, so post code delivery and return timelines are predictable.