Deals

Sports Direct Tumbles as Ashley's Debenhams Bet Backfires

Sports Direct shares drop 12% after GBP85m charge hurts profit
Ashley’s erratic retail investments have confounded investors

U.K. High Street Stores Face Declining Revenue — Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

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By Sam Chambers

July 19, 2018 at 7:44 AM UTC

Updated on

July 19, 2018 at 8:59 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Sports Direct International Plc investors have been left counting the cost of billionaire founder Mike Ashley’s wheeling and dealing.

The U.K. sportswear retailer reported a 73 percent decline in full-year pretax profit Thursday. The drop was mainly due to a one-time charge of 85.4 million pounds ($111 million) related to its investment in struggling department store chain Debenhams Plc. Sports Direct’s shares dropped as much as 12 percent.