Marks & Spencer (LON:MKS) Share Price Today: Dividend Record Date, Store Expansion and Cyberattack Fallout

Marks & Spencer Group plc (LON:MKS) spent Black Friday trading broadly flat around 350p in London on Friday, 28 November 2025, as investors weighed an interim dividend milestone, aggressive UK store expansion, ongoing cyberattack costs and a raft of sustainability and digital initiatives. ^[1]

Over the past week the stock has risen a little over 5%, helped by a sharp mid‑week rally, but it still sits roughly 16% below its 52‑week high near 418p. ^[2] Despite the earlier hit from an April cyber hack, brokers increasingly frame M&S as a recovery and growth story – even as some fundamental analysts warn the shares are edging into “moderately overvalued” territory. ^[3]

Marks & Spencer share price snapshot on 28 November 2025

Market data from Investing.com shows Marks & Spencer shares trading at 350.0p on Friday, with an intraday range of approximately 347.2p–351.8p, after opening at 350.7p. Turnover on the day was just over 1.2 million shares, a relatively quiet session following two brisk, news‑driven days earlier in the week. ^[4]

That follows a very punchy climb mid‑week:

Wednesday 26 November: the stock jumped about 4.5%, closing near 344.6p as investors reacted to store‑expansion headlines and anticipation of the upcoming dividend record date.
Thursday 27 November (ex‑dividend day): shares added another 1.6% to finish around 350p, unusually rising even as the stock adjusted for the interim dividend. ^[5]

Compared with last Friday’s close near 333p, the shares are up a little over 5% week‑on‑week, although they remain roughly 13% lower than a month ago when they traded above 400p. ^[6]

An article on ABC Money earlier today highlighted M&S’s “share price rally” and noted that recent gains have taken the retailer’s market value to just over £7 billion, with the stock having recently traded around 357p. ^[7] Intraday pricing and closing levels differ slightly between data vendors, but the broad picture is consistent: M&S has bounced off recent lows yet still trades at a discount to its spring highs.

Dividend record date: 1.2p interim payout locked in today

For income investors, 28 November 2025 is a key date in the Marks & Spencer calendar.

In its half‑year results, the group declared an interim dividend of 1.2p per share, up 20% from last year’s 1.0p. ^[8] According to the company’s official dividend timetable:

Ex‑dividend date: 27 November 2025
Record date: 28 November 2025 (today)
Payment date: 9 January 2026

Shareholders on the register at close of business today will receive the January payout; anyone buying from this morning onwards will not qualify. ^[9]

M&S has reiterated that its interim dividend is designed to be roughly one‑third of the prior year’s total dividend, signalling management’s intent to rebuild a progressive payout after post‑pandemic and cyber‑related disruptions. ^[10]

At current prices around 350p, the interim alone represents a modest yield, but combined with the latest 2.6p final dividend the running yield moves towards the 1–2% range, with scope to rise if earnings fully normalise over the next 18 months.

Growth drive: 500‑site food expansion and a 100,000 sq ft Merry Hill flagship

While today’s share price is subdued, the underlying growth story is anything but quiet.

500 potential new food‑store locations

In late November, Marks & Spencer formally published a list of around 500 “potential locations” across the UK where it wants to open or upgrade M&S Food stores as part of a plan to double the size of its food business and modernise the estate. TechStock²+1

Key elements of that strategy include:

A targeted long‑term estate of roughly 180 full‑line stores and 420 food halls nationwide.
New M&S Food stores designed at around 18,000 sq ft trading space – big enough for a full weekly shop, not just top‑up missions. TechStock²
About 20 new or renewed stores scheduled to open between November and March, creating roughly 800 jobs, with 12 former Homebase sites already acquired for conversion into some of M&S’s largest standalone food halls. TechStock²+1

Regional media are already dissecting the list. In Kent, for instance, local outlet KentOnline reports that towns including Ashford, Canterbury, Dover, Folkestone, Herne Bay, Strood, Tonbridge and Whitstable feature on the retailer’s wish list, reflecting M&S’s push for larger, modern food stores in areas where it sees strong demand. ^[11]

Merry Hill: 100,000 sq ft flagship opens today

The expansion story is visible on the ground this morning. M&S has just unveiled a newly transformed flagship at Merry Hill, West Midlands, merging two former units into a single 100,000 sq ft store. ^[12]

According to The Retail Bulletin, the new shop includes:

A significantly enlarged foodhall with wider aisles, more space for fresh produce from M&S Select Farms, an in‑store bakery, wine and flower shops, and even a “cheese barge”‑style feature.
A consolidated home, menswear and kidswear destination on the upper floor, with womenswear moved to a dedicated lower‑floor space.
A new M&S Coffee Shop alongside the main store. ^[13]

Regional management describes Merry Hill as one of more than 20 new or renewed stores set to open across the UK by the end of the current financial year – a visible part of the plan to rotate the estate into bigger, more productive formats and support full‑range food shopping. ^[14]

Convenience and forecourts: deepening the BP partnership

M&S’s store strategy is not limited to malls and high streets. A new piece published today by the Australian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS) offers a detailed look at the retailer’s long‑running partnership with BP on UK service‑station sites. ^[15]

At trial locations like Merrow and Pinkham Way, BP is testing upgraded roadside formats that integrate:

Fast EV chargers alongside traditional fuel
Expanded M&S Food ranges with a strong emphasis on fresh produce, bakery and “foodvenience” missions
On‑site M&S bakeries and gifting zones for last‑minute purchases
Self‑checkout systems that combine fuel and in‑store purchases in a single transaction. ^[16]

If successful, BP expects to extend the new formats across a wider slice of its UK estate in 2026, effectively giving M&S more small‑box, high‑traffic outlets without bearing full site capex. ^[17] For investors, the forecourt trials underline how the food business can grow not just through standalone stores but also through capital‑light partnerships.

Store renewal and beauty focus: Bristol flagship and beyond

M&S’s push to modernise its physical estate is also visible in city‑centre flagships. Earlier this month the retailer opened a new 80,000 sq ft store at Cabot Circus in Bristol, described by beauty trade title TheIndustry.beauty as hosting the company’s largest beauty hall yet, a 2,700 sq ft space carrying more than 70 brands and some 5,000 products. ^[18]

The Bristol flagship brings food, fashion, home and beauty together across three floors, with the enhanced beauty hall positioned as an “elevated” experience featuring brands ranging from Clinique and Benefit to newer entrants like Iconic London and Hair by Sam McKnight. Over the past two years, M&S has renewed around 35 of its top stores, with further major refits – including a revamped Oxford Street flagship – scheduled over the coming months. ^[19]

For the share price, this matters because the refreshed stores typically deliver higher sales densities and a sharper brand perception, supporting the company’s long‑stated ambition to move away from tired legacy space into fewer, better shops.

Digital reach: TikTok Shop pilot to woo younger shoppers

On the digital side, M&S has been experimenting with new channels to reach younger consumers. Earlier this month it launched a pilot TikTok Shop in the UK, focusing initially on curated beauty products such as Apothecary hand lotions, SKINKIND skincare and home‑fragrance ranges. ^[20]

TheIndustry.beauty reports that:

The TikTok Shop marks M&S’s first direct step into the social platform’s fast‑growing e‑commerce ecosystem.
The retailer plans to run TikTok LIVE shopping sessions, creator collaborations, tutorials and limited‑time bundles to test conversion.
The hashtag #marksandspencer already features over 100,000 posts, reflecting strong organic engagement. ^[21]

This pilot fits into a broader “social‑first” marketing and e‑commerce strategy, aiming to keep M&S relevant with digital‑native shoppers while also supporting in‑store beauty sales.

Sustainability and supply chain: RE:Spark decarbonisation programme

Sustainability is another front on which the company has been busy. In mid‑November, M&S announced RE:Spark, a new supply‑chain decarbonisation programme developed with Schneider Electric. ^[22]

According to Schneider Electric and ESG Dive, RE:Spark is designed to accelerate the adoption of renewable electricity across M&S’s global fashion supply chain, supporting its target of reaching net‑zero emissions across its value chain by 2040. ^[23]

Core features include:

A central digital hub, powered by Schneider’s Zeigo platform, where suppliers can upload emissions data, track decarbonisation progress and access learning resources.
Regional webinars and market briefings in key sourcing regions such as China, India, Bangladesh, Vietnam and Turkey, aimed at helping suppliers procure renewable electricity.
Advisory services to help factories assess and implement clean‑energy solutions and potentially aggregate demand for power‑purchase agreements. ^[24]

For ESG‑minded investors, RE:Spark directly targets hard‑to‑tackle Scope 3 emissions, which make up the bulk of M&S’s climate footprint, and reinforces the narrative that the retailer is investing not just in front‑of‑house refurbishments but also in the plumbing behind its supply chain.

Cyberattack fallout still dominates the numbers

Behind all the store openings and ESG initiatives, the April cyberattack remains the key swing factor in Marks & Spencer’s financials.

In its half‑year results for the 26 weeks to 27 September 2025, M&S reported:

Adjusted profit before tax of £184.1 million, down 55.4% from £413.1 million a year earlier.
Reported profit before tax of just £3.4 million, a 99% collapse attributed largely to one‑off adjusting items.
Adjusting items of £167.8 million, of which around £101.6 million related directly to the cyber incident. ^[25]

Revenue and sales performance were much more robust:

Group revenue rose about 22% year‑on‑year to nearly £8 billion.
Food sales increased 7.8%, benefiting from new stores and improved ranges.
Fashion, Home & Beauty sales fell 16.4%, primarily because online operations were suspended for several weeks during the hack and its aftermath. ^[26]

Reuters notes that the attack forced M&S to suspend online clothing orders for around seven weeks and click‑and‑collect for nearly four, while store availability was hit and logistics costs rose. Management now expects to be fully recovered by March 2026 and is guiding for second‑half profit to be at least in line with last year. ^[27]

The Cyber Express, which also covered the incident, highlights that adjusted EPS dropped sharply, though the company partially offset the damage with £100 million of insurance income and has started to invest in automation and supply‑chain resilience projects worth several hundred million pounds. ^[28]

For investors, the cyberattack introduces both risk and optionality: if M&S executes its recovery plan and the one‑off costs truly prove non‑recurring, earnings could rebound faster than simple trend‑line forecasts imply.

Analyst sentiment and valuation: extended recovery, but not cheap

Recent commentary from brokers and independent analysts paints a nuanced picture of M&S’s valuation:

A Morningstar note published on 5 November describes the stock as “moderately overvalued” following the recent rally, reflecting both the strong recovery already priced in and uncertainty around the pace of post‑hack earnings normalisation. ^[29]
MarketScreener’s aggregation of broker research indicates that firms such as Berenberg and Bank of America have raised their price targets after the half‑year report, framing M&S as an “extended recovery story” with a still‑attractive transformation pipeline. ^[30]
ABC Money’s piece today notes that some brokers now see upside to around 470p, while more cautious analysts anchor their targets near 335p, with a broadly positive skew in recommendations (a core of Buy/Outperform ratings tempered by valuation concerns). ^[31]

Put together, the consensus view seems to be:

Pros: structural growth in food, better store formats, visible capex in logistics and automation, improving digital engagement and a restored dividend;
Cons: lingering cyberattack uncertainty, a still‑challenged clothing business, and a share price that already reflects much of the near‑term rebound story.

On simple metrics, the stock trades on a mid‑teens earnings multiple, which is not obviously cheap for a UK retailer, but bulls argue that M&S’s brand strength, store refresh programme and food‑led premium positioning justify a premium to more commoditised peers. ^[32]

What today’s news means for M&S stock

As of 28 November 2025, Marks & Spencer sits at an interesting crossroads:

Tactically, the share price has stabilised after a week‑long bounce, with today’s flat session reflecting a market that is digesting dividend adjustments and a heavy flow of corporate news rather than reacting to fresh shocks. ^[33]
Strategically, the company is pushing hard into store modernisation, food‑led growth and convenience partnerships, while also investing in digital channels like TikTok Shop and supply‑chain decarbonisation through RE:Spark. ^[34]
Financially, the cyberattack still casts a long shadow over profits, but underlying sales growth – particularly in food – remains solid, and the reinstated, growing dividend suggests management confidence in medium‑term cash flows. ^[35]

For existing shareholders, today marks the locking‑in of the 1.2p interim dividend, plus another tick in the box for the store‑renewal and food‑expansion roadmap. New investors, meanwhile, face a more delicate decision: the turnaround is real, but so are the risks, and the market is starting to price in a fair chunk of the good news.

Counting the cost of Marks & Spencer’s cyber-attack, and AstraZeneca versus GSK