IMI PLC (LON:IMI) has announced its preliminary results, year ended 31 December 2025
Compounding earnings growth
£500m share buyback announced
Guiding to sixth consecutive year of mid-single digit organic revenue growth
| Adjusted1 | Statutory | ||||||
| 2025 | 2024 | Change | Organic4 | 2025 | 2024 | Change | |
| Revenue | £2,304m | £2,210m | +4% | +5% | £2,304m | £2,210m | +4% |
| Operating profit | £460m | £436m | +6% | +8% | £422m | £356m | +19% |
| Operating margin | 20.0% | 19.7% | +30bps | 18.3% | 16.1% | +220bps | |
| Profit before tax | £442m | £419m | +6% | £419m | £330m | +27% | |
| Basic EPS | 132.3p | 122.5p | +8% | 124.3p | 96.0p | +29% | |
| Dividend per share | 34.2p | 31.1p | +10% | 34.2p | 31.1p | +10% | |
| Free cash flow2 | £290m | £263m | +10% | ||||
| Return on invested capital3 | 14.0% | 13.4% | +60bps | ||||
| Net debt / EBITDA | 1.0x | 1.0x | |||||
1 Excluding the effect of adjusting items as reported in the consolidated income statement. See Note 1 for definitions of alternative performance measures.
2 Free cash flow before corporate activity – dividends, M&A and share buybacks.
3 Post-tax return on invested capital, as described in Note 1 to the financial statements.
4 After adjusting for acquisitions, disposals and exchange rates (see Note 1).
Highlights
· Another year of high-quality revenue and profit growth
o 5% organic sales growth and 8% organic adjusted operating profit growth
o Statutory revenue up 4%, statutory operating profit growth of 19%
o Adjusted basic earnings per share up 8%, 10% CAGR since growth strategy launched in 2019
o Around 45% of revenue generated from the higher margin aftermarket
o Record £206m of Growth Hub orders, up 38% (2024: £149m)
· Automation revenue up 8% organically
o Excellent performance from Process Automation, Aftermarket orders up 11% organically
o Resilient performance in Industrial Automation, despite uncertain markets
· Life Technology revenue up 1% organically
o Strong demand for energy-saving solutions in Climate Control
o Life Science & Fluid Control broadly flat as markets began to stabilise
o Transport down in line with the global heavy duty truck market
· Continued margin expansion
o Adjusted operating margin up 30bps to 20.0%, expect further progress over time
o Statutory operating margin up 220bps to 18.3%
· Return on invested capital increased by 60bps to 14.0%
· Disciplined approach to capital allocation creating significant value for shareholders
o Free cash flow increased to £290m, despite record investment
o Net debt / adjusted EBITDA of 1.0x at the lower end of our 1x – 2x target range
o Proposed 10% increase in final dividend to 23.2p
o £500m share buyback announced
Roy Twite, Chief Executive Officer, said:
“The execution of our growth strategy is creating significant value for shareholders, and we delivered another strong performance in 2025. We have now delivered five consecutive years of mid-single digit organic revenue growth and expanded margins to meet our medium-term target of 20%+.
With our world-class engineering expertise and relentless focus on commercial excellence, we are well placed to address our customers’ needs for bespoke, high value-add fluid and motion control solutions. Supported by our three long-term megatrends – Energy, Automation and Healthcare – and our focus on the attractive aftermarket, we are compounding earnings growth.
In line with our disciplined approach to capital allocation and commitment to enhancing shareholder returns, we are proposing a 10% increase to the final dividend and are pleased to be announcing a £500m share buyback programme.
Thanks to the hard work of all our people, we expect to deliver another year of strong financial and strategic progress in 2026. We expect full year adjusted basic EPS to be between 136p and 142p, representing our sixth consecutive year of mid-single digit organic revenue growth.”
