reports
- Paul Bryant
Fund management pivot bears fruit: EBITDA +37%
A year ago, the Mercia 27 strategy was announced, which prioritised scaling the highly profitable fund management business and targeted EBITDA of c£10m by FY27 (£5.5m in FY24). Mercia is flying along. FY25 (to 31 Mar 25) has seen FUM (funds managed for 3rd parties) increase 10% y-o-y to £1.80bn (+46% over 2 years) and EBITDA jump 37% from £5.5m to £7.6m. Its net inflow rate has been the highest among London-listed peers for two years. Much of that FUM growth came from c. £250m of inflows in Q4...
- Mike Jeremy
FY25 another strong year and platform for growth
For the year to 31 March 2025 Supreme reported revenue of £231.1m, +4%YoY, (ED est £235.1m), gross profit (including forex) of £73.7m, +16%YoY (ED est £72.3m), and (adj.) EBITDA of £40.5m, +6%YoY (ED est £40.0m). Top line growth was propelled by the acquisition of Clearly Drinks and Typhoo Tea, further diversifying the portfolio as the Group adjusted to the ban on disposable vapes which was implemented on 1 June. EPS (adj.) for the year was 20.1p (ED est 20.1p). Acquisitions to the value if £25...
- Mike Jeremy
Growth story intact, despite customer uncertainties
Mpac reports that H1 revenue matched the Board’s expectations, with a strong order book in January and sound performance from acquired business. However, during Q2 the Original Equipment (OE) order book slowed appreciably and is now seen at c.£90m on 30 June versus £118.5m on 31 December 2024. Concentrated predominantly in the US, Mpac reports growing uncertainty and reduced consumer confidence resulting in customers deciding to defer planned capital spending and cutting costs. This results in ...
- Paul Bryant
Core profits exceed forecast, AUM +6% in Q1’26
The period of Polar’s FY25 (1 Apr 24 – 31 Mar 25) was horrific for many asset managers – but not for Polar. It was one of only two in our peer group to record net inflows (page 4), with heavy outflows commonplace. Polar’s AUM fell 2% over the year, with a sharp decline in Q4 on falling markets. Investment performance was -£495m, net flows +£123m, and fund closures -£111m. Post year-end, AUM has bounced back, up 6% since 31 Mar to £22.6bn (page 3). Gross income increased 14% y-o-y to £226.1m, ...
- Chris Wickham
Headwinds offset brand relaunch benefits, for now
Ultimate Products announced a trading update today which prompts us to reduce our sales and profit expectations for FY2025. Furthermore, caution about a recent fall in order books causes us to reduce sales numbers for FY2026. However, we note that management highlights a more intense focus on its sales function and both Salter and Beldray are in the relatively early stages of their re-brands. Despite progress in headline sales, which increased by 4% from a year earlier between February and May ...
- Toby Thorrington
Retaining focus, positioning to grow
As flagged, FY25 ended on a softer note than anticipated earlier in the year but Speedy maintained both EBITDA and DPS in generally challenging trading conditions. FY26 will see the culmination of Velocity’s enabling actions and the focus should then more clearly turn to growth in revenue and margins. The current valuation is giving little credit for improving profitability beyond the current year in our view. Speedy’s share price has recovered well from March lows but remains down 10% YTD. Ear...
- Caroline Gulliver
Undervalued 5* power
AO’s FY25 results illustrate the power of its excellent customer service, rated 4.9/5 on Trustpilot. 12% growth in B2C Retail revenues and a focus on improved unit economics has led to LFL Adj. PBT rising 32% to £45m - and margin +80bps to 4.1%. As already announced, FY26E will bring significant cost headwinds and so Adj. PBT guidance is £40m-£50m (we are unchanged at £45m). However, the medium-term outlook for AO is encouraging given the revenue momentum and opportunity for further margin exp...
- Toby Thorrington
Strategic actions gaining traction
While headline profitability was in line with the prior year, there was plenty of evidence in the FY25 results which demonstrated that strategic actions are working, notably in the UK. With operationally well-invested businesses, leading market positions and a strong balance sheet, Norcros has clear scope for both organic and acquisitive growth from this platform. Group EBIT was in line with consensus and the prior year at £43.2m. For ongoing operations, revenue increased by 0.9% LFL CER with E...
- Mike Jeremy
H1 25 results and proposed delisting from LSE AIM
For the half year to 31 March 2025, Benchmark Holdings reported revenue from continuing operations (post disposal of the Genetics business area) of £40.6m, -22%YoY (-17% CER), primarily resulting from the pause in sea-based sales of Ectosan®Vet and CleanTreat® in the Health business area. The Group recorded an operating loss of £8.4m (H1 24, £7.2m loss), and (adj.) EBITDA of £4.2m, down 56%YoY. On 23 May, the Group announced its intention to cancel its Admission to trading on AIM and Euronext ...
- James Tetley
Resilient results plus further strategic progress
Vp’s full year results confirm a resilient performance, driven by robust demand from key Infrastructure markets (Water and Transmission) alongside notable strategic progress. The acquisition of CPH has added depth to the Group’s international offering and the business is performing well. Results again demonstrate the strength of Vp's business model, which continues to deliver attractive returns by focusing on specialist activities across a diverse spectrum of end markets. Infrastructure has be...
- David O'Brien
Activity levels improved in Q2
Improving momentum from Q2, which has continued into Q3, helped to deliver a satisfactory outcome for the interim results. With the loss-making US business closed, encouraging activity in the EuAm region, a strong performance in the Middle East pipeline and rising utilisation levels, we remain increasingly confident the Group will hit FY25 expectations. The improved strategy, coupled with the healthy balance sheet, has enabled the Board to fund an attractive dividend as well as to return cash sh...
- Paul Bryant
Strong growth drives profit +24%, dividend +19%
FY25 (to 31 Mar 25) was an exceptionally strong year which exceeded our previous forecasts. Revenue grew 23% to £45.3m (previous forecast £44.3m), adjusted operating profit 24% to £22.9m (£22.1m) and PBT 29% to £21.6m (£21.3m). Net cash was £32.1m at year-end with no debt. A final dividend of 9.5p is proposed. Full year dividend is 19.0p (yield 3.2%), +19% YOY. Underpinning performance was sector-leading AUM growth, up 26% to £20.9bn (FY24: £16.6bn). This was in turn mostly a result of record o...
- Paul Bryant
New US licence widens global footprint
CAB Payments has announced that its subsidiary, Crown Agents Bank Limited, has received regulatory approval to operate a representative office in New York. Over time, we would expect this development to boost growth in the greater Americas region, and in particular the LATAM regions of South and Central America. We knew the licence application process was underway and, as detailed in our April initiation report, it will help to build additional and stronger relationships with US-based US Dollar...
- Caroline Gulliver
Sun shines on seasonal and big ticket spending
Kingfisher’s strong Q126 sales growth of 1.6% (+3.1% ex calendar and FX, 2.7% LFL), beat consensus estimates by c.1.5% as B&Q led with nearly 8% LFL sales growth. The warm and sunny weather over the late Easter holiday drove seasonal sales (e.g. outdoor and gardening) and encouraged “big-ticket” projects. Some of this spend is likely to have pulled-forward demand from 2Q26 hence there is no change to management’s FY26E guidance of £480m-£540m Adj. PBT at this stage. However, with market share g...
- Mike Jeremy
FY25 trading update and a new record order book
In a Trading Update for the year to 30 April 2025, Cohort reports strong growth and a record closing order book of £615m, materially surpassing the previous record of £518.7m. The Group expects FY25 performance in line with market expectations, underpinned by strength in the Communications & Intelligence (C&I) division, whilst Sensors & Effectors (S&E) performance was broadly comparable to FY24. Order intake was c.£285m (1.1x revenue) and excludes an additional £80m of orders acquired with EM ...
- Caroline Gulliver
Multi-disciplined, cashflow-generating growth
Begbies Traynor has concluded FY25 with a very strong performance. 12% revenue growth in FY25, from its multi-disciplined suite of services, has led to 7% growth in Adj. PBT and £19.4m in FCF pre-acquisitions (above expectations). Moreover, the macro-economic environment is supportive, and the pipeline of potential acquisitions is encouraging. FY25 revenue growth of c.12% to £153m was c.1% above consensus expectations. An impressive c.11% organic growth in Business recovery and advisory service...
- Paul Bryant
Tough H1, but shares detached from fundamentals
Given previous updates, the impact of challenges faced in H1 is no surprise. AUM fell 32% to £25.3bn, with half of the fall due to two cancelled (low margin) St James’s Place (SJP) mandates. Revenue fell 11% y-o-y to £76.5m, adjusted operating profit dropped 21% to £20.5m, and investors can expect a fall in full-year dividend. However, Impax is hardly the disaster implied by its share price decline: down 31% over six months and by 68% over 12 months – leaving its shares on a forward PE of just ...
- James Tetley
Positive AGM statement; growth strategy on track
Restore’s trading update yesterday confirmed a positive start to the year, with revenue growth in the first four months underpinned by the performance of the core storage business. The period has also seen three acquisitions, confirming management’s ambitions to bolster organic growth with selective M&A. Restore is a high-quality business with strong margins and a high level of contracted and recurring revenues. Whilst the shares are showing early signs of a recovery in momentum, the valuation...
- David O'Brien
A marked reduction in debt
The preliminary results from Strix ticked several boxes, including a significant reduction in indebtedness, profitability ahead of upwardly revised estimates and a refocused Consumer Goods division. The strong momentum experienced during Q4 ’24 continued into Q1 ’25, albeit this slowed within Kettle Controls during Q2 and reflecting the macroeconomic uncertainty. That said, the Board’s guidance on profitability remains unchanged. In view of the uncertainty attached to global trade currently, we...
- Toby Thorrington
Moving in the right direction
Hunting’s AGM update says that FY25 has started well and our expectation of growth in all 3 estimate years is unchanged. Its share price has been hit by wider market sentiment; its valuation looks attractive against a range of comparator benchmarks. After strong group progress in FY24 (with revenues and EBITDA norm ahead by 13% and 23% y-o-y respectively). Further revenue growth and margin expansion up c. 200bp to 14% in Q1 has driven a 34% EBITDA uplift (to U$38.7m). After the FY24 results ann...
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