M&S’s adjusted profit before tax fell 23.8% to £671.4 million for the year ended 28 March 2026. The first-half fall was far steeper: adjusted profit before tax dropped 55.4% to £184.1 million in the 26 weeks to 27 September 2025. The figures describe different periods, and adjusted profit is not the same as statutory profit.
How much did M&S profits fall?
The answer depends on the period and accounting measure. M&S reported the following profit-before-tax figures:
| Period | Adjusted profit before tax | Statutory profit before tax |
|---|---|---|
| 26 weeks ended 27 September 2025 | £184.1m, down 55.4% year on year | £3.4m, down 99.1% year on year |
| Year ended 28 March 2026 | £671.4m, down from £881.1m in FY2024/25 (a 23.8% fall) | £364.6m, down 28.8% year on year |
These figures are from M&S’s FY2025/26 results and 2025 half-year results. Adjusted profit excludes adjusting items and certain non-controlling interests under the company’s definition; statutory profit is a separate reported measure. The 99.1% first-half decline is therefore not the full-year decline, nor should it be described as the drop in adjusted profit.
Why did the cyber attack affect profits?
M&S said it proactively took some systems offline after the incident. That response disrupted the systems and processes used to move stock and take orders. Stores remained open, with staff using manual processes for forecasting, ordering and replenishment.
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- Warehouse management systems were disconnected.
- Online orders were paused, affecting home delivery, click and collect, and in-store ordering.
- Disrupted stock flow and reduced availability affected trading.
- Stock-management costs rose, while Fashion, Home & Beauty faced lower online sales and Food saw higher markdowns and waste.
M&S also reported more than £50m of additional costs from packaging producer-responsibility levies and higher employer National Insurance contributions during the half year. Those were separate cost pressures, not costs attributed to the cyber incident. The company described the period as extraordinary and said the incident’s one-off effects were reflected in first-half results.
How much did the attack cost M&S?
M&S’s 2026 annual report recorded £131.3m in incident-related adjusting costs. Of that, £109.3m related to immediate systems response and recovery. These are the company’s reported incident-related charges, rather than a measure of every possible indirect or longer-term effect on trading.
The same annual report shows £292.1m of total adjustments to profit before tax. That total included other programmes and items as well as incident-related costs, so it should not be presented as the cyber attack’s cost. In the half-year results, M&S separately reported £100.0m of incident-related insurance income in adjusted profit and £101.6m of incident-related adjusting costs. The income and costs are distinct accounting lines and should not be netted or treated as interchangeable.
When did M&S services return?
M&S said the temporary pause in online operations ran from late April to early June 2025. Home delivery resumed first; click and collect returned in early August. The company reported that Food had largely recovered by the half-year reporting point, with margins closer to normal. Recovery in Fashion, Home & Beauty took longer as M&S worked to smooth stock flow.
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Did M&S recover by the end of the year?
The full-year results describe a year of two halves. M&S said adjusted profit increased 4.1% in the second half year on year, after the substantial first-half impact. For the full year, Food sales grew 7.0%, while Fashion, Home & Beauty sales fell 7.7%; M&S linked the latter performance to the online pause, disrupted stock flow and restricted availability.
That points to a partial, uneven recovery in the company’s reporting: Food was further along, while Fashion, Home & Beauty remained affected across the year. M&S said it expected profit growth to resume versus 2024/25. That was management’s outlook when the FY results were issued, not a guarantee or confirmation of subsequent results.
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