Warpaint beats expectations after strong fourth quarter

Colour cosmetics specialist Warpaint London issued a positive trading update for the financial year just ended on Friday.

The AIM-traded firm, in its previous update on 10 November, had anticipated sales for the year ended 31 December to be a minimum of £85m, surpassing the 2022 figure of £64.1m.

However, following a strong performance in the fourth quarter, Warpaint said its full-year sales for 2023 had exceeded that, reaching £89.5m.

The group said it maintained a robust gross product margin, surpassing the levels achieved in 2022.

As a result, it expected to report a profit before tax of at least £18m for the year - a significant increase compared to the prior year's £7.7m.

The performance exceeded both market expectations and the board's prior guidance of profit before tax in excess of £16m, as announced on 10 November.

Warpaint London said it maintained a strong financial position, with cash balances at the end of December totalling £9m - an increase from £5.9m year-on-year.

The company also had no outstanding debt.

Warpaint said it would release its full-year results for the year ended 31 December in April.

At 0856 GMT, shares in Warpaint London were up 2.02% at 389.7p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.