Next week on the stock market

easyJet’s last set of results landed well with markets, who had become nervous after rival Ryanair issued a weak performance over the same period. But easyJet bucked the trend by selling a higher percentage of its available seats for the fourth quarter, despite increasing its capacity by 7%. This was enough to reassure investors that the group remains on the right flight path to deliver another record-breaking summer.

Guidance for revenue per seat in the short term was a little soft though. We don’t think this is the start of a fully-fledged price war between the low-cost carriers, but it’s something we’ll be keeping an eye on. Recent industry data shows that air travel demand continues to soar higher, and we’re keen to hear what easyJet sees on the horizon in next week’s results.

An independent Non-Executive director of Hargreaves Lansdown plc is also an Independent Non-Executive Director of easyJet plc.

It’s been a tough start to the year for Halfords, and we’ve already heard that weak consumer demand saw first-half sales growth grind to a halt. Price-conscious customers have been trading down to budget ranges, and a lack of big-ticket discretionary sales has weighed on performance.

Halfords is leaning into cost cuts to try and help soften the impact on the profit line. It’s hoping to trim around £30mn of fat this year, but with cost inflation expected to eclipse this figure, there isn’t much wiggle room for profitability if sales don’t start picking up soon.

Markets are expecting underlying pre-tax profits of nearly £29mn over the full year, and we’re keen to see how much progress has been made towards this target in next week’s first-half results. But with the near-term outlook remaining uncertain, especially for big-ticket items, we see room for disappointment.

Following a disappointing outcome in the last financial year, and low single-digit revenue growth in the first quarter, investors will be hoping for signs of a pickup over the rest of the first half. Results are typically second-half weighted, so they’ll also be a particular focus on full-year guidance, which currently expects underlying pre-tax profit of around £144mn.

Online’s an increasingly important channel, so keep an eye on user numbers too. Services such as vets and grooming are also areas of investment, so we’ll be watching for signs of progress here, as well as any commentary around the ongoing enquiry into the veterinary sector by the Competition and Markets authority.