LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - 4imprint surged on Tuesday as it upgraded its full-year outlook after a "resilient" performance in the 10 months to the end of October.
This was delivered against a backdrop of "volatile macroeconomic conditions", it noted.

The company, a direct marketer of promotional products, now expects full-year group revenue of not less than $1.32bn, which is at the high end of the current analyst forecast range, and pre-tax profit of not less than $142m, above the current range.

4imprint said group revenue in the first 10 months dipped 2% on the same period a year earlier. Order intake has continued to run about 3% below the prior year, with average order values in line, "as the business has traded resiliently through its peak seasonal months," it said.

Existing customer order count was flat year to date, "reflecting strong and consistent retention rates". New customer order count was down 13%, a continuation of the performance seen in the first half.

4imprint said gross profit margin has remained strong at just below 33%, as product cost increases due to tariffs are being phased in later than anticipated, while the marketing mix is providing flexibility. As a result, a double-digit operating profit margin has been maintained.

"The board is confident that the group will continue to effectively navigate market conditions, delivering solid financial results while positioning the business to take advantage of opportunities that will present themselves as economic and market conditions improve," it said.

At 1005 GMT, the shares were up 15.4% at 3,930p.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "US promotional products business 4imprint may not want to print the headlines from its 2025 performance on a mug but its latest update suggests the situation is not as bleak as feared.

"Earlier in the year, 4imprint had painted a bleak picture as it warned of the impact of tariffs on its supply chain and cost base. Now it turns out performance has been resilient, with average order values not budging compared with last year and order intake only falling modestly.

"Investors will be pleased to see 4imprint maintain operating margins despite the increase in costs associated with trade levies.

"The company is one of the leading players in the $25 billion-a-year North American promotional market, which remains highly fragmented, providing opportunities for it to claim market share even against a tricky economic backdrop.

"Selling a wide range of promotional products like branded bags, pens and stationery to companies in North America, 4imprint largely doesn't manufacture the goods it sells, instead outsourcing the work to third parties. This means it has limited capital needs and generates plenty of cash flow.

"The big decline in 4imprint's orders from new customers is a nagging concern. The market will hope to see an improvement in this trend sooner rather than later even if a strong balance sheet provides a buffer to ride out further volatility in trading."

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