M&S reveals full cost of cyber attack
The hit from Marks and Spencer’s cyber attack earlier this year is set to total £136m by 2026, the company said this morning.
This is in addition to insurance income of £100m related to the attack, which hit the FTSE 100 firm in April.
The fashion and food company was forced to suspend online orders for almost two months this summer, with click and collect suspended for almost four months.
Chief executive Stuart Machin said the last six months have been an “extraordinary moment in time” for M&S.
“Today, we are regaining momentum… Our plan to reshape M&S for long – term sustainable growth is unchanged, our ambitions are undimmed, and our determination to knuckle down and deliver is stronger than ever.
The company expects to be “recovered and back on track” by spring next year, anticipating profit in line with last year in the next six months despite the residual effects of the attack.
The £136m bill included an £83m charge for the immediate response and recovery teams, while £18.6m has been spent on specialist legal and professional services support.
M&S’ share price barely budget in early trades, down just one per cent.
Profit at M&S halves
For the 26 weeks between September 27 – covering the entirety of the cyber attack – M&S reported a half-yearly fall in profit before tax of £184.1m, down £229m from £413.1m in 2024.
Fashion, home and beauty sales fell 16.4 per cent, while international sales fell 11.6 per cent and food sales rose 7.8 per cent, driven by “improved perceptions of value and quality”, the company said.
“The Food business is now largely recovered… [but] as we have rebuilt online customer traffic in Fashion, Home & Beauty, recovery has been slower,” it added.
Peel Hunt analysts said the “uncertainty remains” despite management “performing manfully across the cyber incident”.
Mark Crouch, market analyst for eToro said the incident has been a “bitter blow for a brand that had been flying high, finally shaking off its dowdy image and delivering the kind of retail renaissance investors had only dreamed of.”
“That the share price has held up so resiliently is testament to the strength of the turnaround before the hack, but 2025 now looks like a year of what-ifs.”
M&S had pre-warned markets about the likely impact of the cyber attack, estimating the figure at £300m.