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| Thorntons' shares slump by 25% after profit warning | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Chocolate firm Thorntons has warned its investors that annual profits will fall this year because of poor sales of its products in some supermarket chains. | |
| The firm's shares slumped by 25% when the London stock market opened, dropping 30 pence to 86 pence. | |
| The fall in sales was partly due to supplies being disrupted by problems at the firm's new depot in Derbyshire. | |
| Thorntons says those are over, but lower sales in the run-up to Christmas will depress the whole year's profits. | |
| Last year, the company made £7.5m in pre-tax profits. | Last year, the company made £7.5m in pre-tax profits. |
| "The board now anticipates a decline in sales in the UK Commercial channel [supermarkets] for the second quarter of the current financial year," it said. | "The board now anticipates a decline in sales in the UK Commercial channel [supermarkets] for the second quarter of the current financial year," it said. |
| "The board now expects earnings for the full year to be below those achieved for the last financial year." | "The board now expects earnings for the full year to be below those achieved for the last financial year." |
| Despite these problems, sales in Thorntons' own shops and in convenience stores have grown. Shareholders will be given a further trading update in January. | Despite these problems, sales in Thorntons' own shops and in convenience stores have grown. Shareholders will be given a further trading update in January. |