Likewise Group (LIKE) H1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• H1 revenue increased 15.4% to £89.9m; gross margin rose 0.8 percentage points to 32.1%, and underlying PBT increased 79.5% to £1.32m.

• Q3 sales grew 29.1% from 1 July to 25 September, lifting FY26 profit expectations to at least £5.0m, materially ahead of market expectations.

• Logistics investment, an August equity raise and market-share gains support a £300m revenue ambition, with no firm timeline.

• More than 9,000 independent customers are served through 14 UK distribution centres, 72 suppliers and 109 sales and management executives.

Financial highlights

• Revenue was £89.9m versus £77.9m; gross profit was £28.8m versus £24.4m.

• Underlying EBITDA was £5.1m, up 15.9%; underlying operating profit was £2.25m, up 34.4%; underlying PBT was £1.32m, up 79.5%.

• Reported operating profit was £1.93m versus £1.17m; reported PBT was £1.00m versus £0.23m, after £0.32m of non-underlying items.

• Net profit was £812k versus £230k; operating cash flow was £4.11m versus £5.20m.

• Revenue growth included supplier price inflation; overheads rose with investment, while higher scale improved gross-profit flow-through.

Outlook and guidance

• FY26 profit is expected to be at least £5.0m, against a FY25 result of £3.1m; Q3 sales rose 29.1% and year-to-date sales were up 20.7%.

• The £200m annual revenue objective is expected to be within reach in FY26; the longer-term ambition is £300m and beyond.

• Management aspires to a 5% PBT margin and sees 6% as achievable as greater volumes use infrastructure more efficiently.

• Interim dividend increased 20% to 0.165p per share, payable 13 November 2026; stated total dividend for 2026 is 0.495p.