London, Jan 7, 2026, 09:15 GMT — Regular session
Tesco PLC shares slipped in early trade on Wednesday as investors waited for the grocer’s Q3 and Christmas sales update. The stock TSCO.L was down 0.8% at 451.5 pence by 0900 GMT and has traded between 450.5p and 456.2p so far.
Thursday’s trading statement is the first Tesco readout on the holiday quarter, a crucial stretch when UK grocers lean on promotions to defend volumes and market share. Tesco last guided for full-year 2025/26 adjusted operating profit — a measure that strips out some one-off items — of 2.9 billion to 3.1 billion pounds, and Chief Executive Ken Murphy warned that “competitive intensity remains high.” Investegate
Industry data this week put Tesco in a firmer position going into the update. Market researcher Worldpanel by Numerator said Tesco sales rose 4.3% in the 12 weeks to Dec. 28, lifting its market share by 0.2 percentage points to 28.7%, the highest since March 2015, while UK grocery inflation eased to 4.3% in December.
Tesco rose 2.8% on Tuesday to close at 4.55 pounds, outperforming the broader market as the FTSE 100 ended up 1.18%. The shares finished 5.39% below their 52-week high of 4.81 pounds set on Nov. 11, MarketWatch data showed.
The group has also kept up its share buyback — a way to return cash to investors by reducing the number of shares in issue. A filing showed Tesco bought 454,043 shares on Jan. 5 at an average 440.49 pence as part of its 1.45 billion-pound programme, with the stock due to be cancelled.
Chart watchers point to nearby levels after the recent run-up. Axel Rudolph, a senior technical analyst at IG, wrote that a break below 435.5p-433.5p would risk a move toward 431.7p-428.2p, while resistance sits in the 456.6p-458.9p area and then the November peak at 480.9p.
But the update carries a clear risk: if Tesco signals it had to spend more on price cuts than investors expect, or if volumes held up only with heavier discounting, margin worries would return quickly. A softer consumer backdrop would sharpen that focus.
