UK pub group Marston's upbeat on annual profit as sports-led pivot pays off

Oct 13 (Reuters) - British pub operator Marston's on Tuesday forecast full-year underlying pre-tax profit above the top end of market expectations, boosted by sports-pub format and tight cost control that helped the company triple its earnings over a three-year period. 

• A heat wave and a packed sporting calendar with events like the FIFA World Cup helped boost customer spending, providing some relief to a hospitality sector grappling with higher costs and cautious consumers

• Shares of the company were up 10.4% in early trading

• Marston's said its Grandstand sports pub format remains a strong growth driver, adding that it plans to increase conversions to at least 100 pubs in 2027 from 60 this year

• The pub operator also plans to announce a shareholder returns programme in November, likely through share buybacks

• Like-for-like sales were broadly flat in the fourth quarter, but fell 1.2% for the 52-week period to September 26

(Reporting by Anushka Chourasia in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)