Next stock slides on UK job warning, guidance pause, but analysts see resilience

next share price, NXT stock [https://invezz.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/20250918_075023_BNiuJ.png] Shares of British retailer Next fell by more than 6% in early trading on Thursday after the company warned that employment opportunities in the United Kingdom are likely to diminish in the second half of the year, raising concerns over consumer spending. The drop made the stock the top loser on the FTSE 100 index, reversing some of the gains it had accumulated earlier this year. Despite the market reaction, Next maintained its forecast for full-year pretax profit of £1.105 billion, underlining confidence in its operations even as it flagged caution about the broader economic outlook. “Next’s decision to not update its profit guidance may have taken the shine off its strong sales growth figures, causing the shares to drop at the open,” Interactive Investor’s Richard Hunter said. “Frequent guidance upgrades from Next mean investors often assume expectations will be raised alongside earnings,” he added. FIRST-HALF EARNINGS BUOYED BY STRONG SALES For the six months through July, Next reported a 13.8% rise in first-half profit, with pretax profit reaching £515 million, compared with £509…