October storm: politics and weather Kingfisher''s Q3 like for like sales growth of -1.1% reflected a slowdown during October, despite easier comparatives. Consumer caution and milder weather were particular challenges. We trim FY Jan-25 estimates by c.1% but make a more significant 7% cut to FY Jan-26 as wage cost pressures build. The improvement project has had a bit of a setback, and we maintain our Neutral rating. Q3 Sales Miss Kingfisher''s Q3 LFLs of -1.1% fell short of consensus'' -0.3% expectations. Kingfisher had already reported the first six weeks; simply weighted, the final seven weeks were c.-1.8% despite easier comparatives. UK saw robust trade trends and good marketplace growth, while big-ticket was soft. There was a similar pattern in France, while Poland big-ticket momentum improved. Outlook FY Jan-25 and FY Jan-26 Q4 has started better with -0.5% LFL sales in the first three weeks of November. Management trimmed its FY Jan-25 adjusted PBT guidance to GBP 510-540m, and we cut our estimates by 1% to the mid-point of GBP 525m. For FY Jan-26, the company quantified UK/France wage pressure to be GBP c.45m and only expects partially to mitigate these pressures. We cut Adj. PBT by 7% from GBP 597m to GBP 555m. Reiterate Neutral, TP lowered to GBp 285 from GBp 310 The market has been unforgiving of UK retailers reporting recently (BandM, WH Smith, JD Sports and now Kingfisher), reflecting nervousness about 2025. On our new forecasts Kingfisher trades on a CY25 P/E of 11.6x and CY26 P/E of 9.8x (at GBp 259). The outlook for interest rates and home improvement in 2025 is still quite encouraging, yet proof is still required about whether France can meaningfully recover in the year ahead. We maintain our Neutral rating.