James Cropper raises annual earnings forecast to £11.3 million

Key Facts

James Cropper raised its forecast for annual adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation to between £10.3 million and £11.3 million, according to Investing.com. The upgrade accompanied a first-half trading update that the company posted on its website dated 20 October 2026. The new range exceeds the previous market consensus of £9.4 million for the current financial year, according to the website. The forecast is about 10% above consensus at the bottom of the range, rising to 20% at the top. The revision follows a previous financial year in which the group reported growth in revenue and adjusted earnings while reducing net debt.

According to James Cropper's published results for the previous financial year, group revenue rose 3.6% to £102.9 million. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation grew faster than revenue, increasing 33% to £8.9 million. By business segment, Advanced Materials reported record revenue of £39.8 million over the same period. Revenue in the business grew 11.5%, outpacing the increase in group revenue as a whole. The company described the Advanced Materials business's performance in its results presentation as "record revenue", as part of its reported performance for the previous financial year.

James Cropper develops nonwoven materials within its Advanced Materials business, according to the business description published on its investor website. The business also develops electrochemical coatings, alongside the nonwoven materials included in its operations. Its Paper and Packaging business produces bespoke creative papers, as well as luxury packaging products that the company lists in its portfolio. In its review of the previous financial year, the company said the business returned to profitability at the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation level during the second half. It added that the business achieved that return to profitability "despite the loss of a major customer", a challenge it highlighted when presenting the performance of Paper and Packaging.

On the balance sheet, the group ended the previous financial year with net debt of £8.1 million, according to its published results. That followed a £4.8 million reduction in net debt during the year, alongside an increase in the group's adjusted earnings. The ratio of net debt to adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation stood at 0.9 times at the end of the same financial period. In a financing move following the end of that year, the annual report announced the refinancing of the company's debt facilities. The refinancing included a committed invoice discounting facility of up to £15 million, according to details in the annual report.

For the previous financial year, adjusted profit before tax was £4.7 million, according to figures published on the company's investor page. Statutory profit before tax was £3.9 million for the same period, below the adjusted figure. The annual report defines the adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation measure used in the group's forecasts as excluding the impact of the International Accounting Standard on employee benefits. The measure also excludes exceptional items, according to the definition adopted by the company in the annual report when presenting its results. The board temporarily suspended dividends during the previous financial year to prioritise strengthening the group's balance sheet.

James Cropper shares rose 9.3% on the day of the announcement, according to an Investing.com report published alongside the company's annual forecast update. The share price reached 768 pence during the session, in the move tracked by the website on the day of the announcement. The shares rose as the company lifted its annual earnings target range above the previous market consensus, following the reported improvement in the previous financial year's results. On its disclosure calendar, James Cropper plans to publish its full interim results, according to the timing cited by Investing.com in its coverage of the trading update. The company set November 2026 for publication of those results for the first half of the current financial year.