By Matteo Castia

Ocado Group PLC said Thursday that retail revenue for first quarter of fiscal 2021 rose sharply as consumers increasingly chose to shop online, particularly during the festive period.

The online grocer and retail-technology specialist said retail revenue rose 40% on year to 599 million pounds ($836.4 million) for the 13 weeks ended Feb. 28.

"Over the past year, large numbers of U.K. consumers have made a permanent shift to online grocery shopping," Ocado Retail Chief Executive Melanie Smith said.

The company warned over the upcoming tough comparatives for the second quarter but said it still expects a positive sales growth in the period and over the following years.

"While this year's quarterly sales figures will reflect the year-on-year comparisons with periods of full lockdown, we expect strong growth over the coming years," Ms. Smith said.

Ocado said it expects to open two standard-sized customer fulfillment centers in fiscal 2021 and a second mini customer fulfillment center in 2022.

Write to Matteo Castia at matteo.castia@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

03-18-21 0332ET