18 November 2025
If you are covering Imperial Brands’ full year results, please see the following comment from Chris Beckett, consumer staples analyst at Quilter Cheviot:
“Imperial delivered a solid set of full year results this morning, broadly in line with expectations following last month’s pre-close update. Group revenue rose 4%, operating profit increased 5%, and the dividend was raised by 4.5%.
“The traditional cigarette business remains resilient, with stable market share overall and gains in Germany and Australia offsetting modest declines in Spain and the UK. Revenue growth of 4% was driven by strong pricing (5%), offsetting volume declines of 2%, though these are reported to have eased slightly since.
“Next generation products (NGP) continue to build momentum, with net revenue up 14% and operating losses marginally down. Imperial is making share gains across vapor, heated tobacco, and nicotine pouches, supporting its longer-term strategy.
“Imperial’s adjusted earnings per share grew 9% to 315p, ahead of consensus and aided by buybacks as well as profit growth. The FY2026 dividend was confirmed at 160.32p and net debt sits at the lower end of the target range. This enabled a £1.45bn buyback, representing 6% of market cap, which remains a key pillar of the investment case.
“Guidance for 2026 aligns with the medium-term targets set out earlier in the year, comprising of low single-digit tobacco revenue growth, double-digit NGP growth, 3–5% operating profit growth, and high single-digit earnings per share improvement. Imperial has delivered a 33% total return year-to-date, comfortably outperforming the rest of UK consumer staples where consumer and category weakness has weighed. However, the valuation attractions of the subsector remain.”
