Accent Group booked higher net profit on the back of 42 new store openings in the fiscal first half.

The fashion group’s net profit increased 11.7 per cent from the year-ago period to $47.2 million as sales rose 4.2 per cent to $844.6 million.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) grew 4.2 per cent to $844.6 million.

“During the half, the company delivered 2.9 per cent like-for-like retail sales growth, opened 42 new stores, secured the distribution rights for Dickies and Lacoste, divested The Trybe business and made progress on the closure of underperforming Glue stores,” said Daniel Agostinelli, Accent Group CEO.

Accent Group ended the period with 903 stores.

The group plans to open more than 10 stores in the second half and intends to acquire more stores for Stylerunner and an additional 10 stores for The Athlete’s Foot.

In a trading update, Accent Group said it witnessed a like-for-like sales growth of 2.2 per cent in the first seven weeks of the second half, benefitting from students returning to school.

It added that it expects to conclude negotiations with Frasers Group on a potential long-term strategic agreement in the second half.