Ares Exits Technology Investment at

Moonpig has credited its tech and upselling capabilities with its rise in revenue, with boosted customer retention and a growing order book. The online card maker recorded a 6.5 per cent rise in revenue in the year ended 30 April, jumping to £373m from £350.1m. Profit before tax swung back to £68.9m from last financial year’s reported £3m, after the group took a £56.7m hit from its experiences business which failed to significantly attract customer interest. Away from this impairment, adjusted profit before tax also jumped 13.4 per cent to £76.5m from £67.5m. Anubhav Malhotra, analyst at Panmure Liberum, said: “The goodwill impairment in FY25 was a major overhang on investor perception of experiences. Its absence in FY26 is a signal that management believes the experiences recoverable amount is no longer at risk.” The board recommended a 25 per cent increase to its total dividend to 3.75p per share and confirmed its intention to commence a £65m share buyback programme in the 2027 financial year. Shares rose 4.3 per cent to 225.2p in early trading. Surging order value The FTSE 250 group reported a 5.7 per cent rise in average order value, reflecting its transition to “higher-priced gifts” available on the site for purchase coupled with card size format upselling and reintroduction of tracked postal services. Card revenue increased 9.4 per cent year on year, despite the UK standard card price of £3.99 remaining unchanged. Tracked deliveries accounted for over 40 per cent of UK card-only orders, while the introduction of premium next-day gift delivery also bolstered customer retention. Gift attachment orders increased to 17.9 per cent of total orders, up from 17.7 per cent the prior year, after introducing products from Next and Boots. The group also hiked its brand awareness in new markets with total revenue across Ireland, Australia and the US growing 33 per cent to £15.7m. Moonpig also focused on improving its experiences arm through broadening its product range, but noted that “revenue progression is likely to remain moderated by lower commission rates” as it continues to evolve the business. Database information The firm also pointed to its tech capabilities, hailing its data assets as one of its “most important sources of competitive advantage” and for future growth. Its database of customer occasion reminders grew 11.2 per cent year on year to 113m, while Moonpig Plus and Greetz Plus memberships jumped 29.3 per cent to 1.2m. The reminders led to a 40 per cent uptick in orders placed with seven days of it being sent out to customers, while memberships accounted for roughly a quarter of all Moonpig orders.  Catherine Faiers, chief executive of Moonpig, said: “These capabilities deepen customer relationships, support higher purchase frequency and provide a strong platform for long-term growth. Looking ahead, we see further opportunities to enhance their effectiveness through greater personalisation.” Moonpig also confirmed its intention to continue investing in its tech and AI capabilities, arguing it “lowers the barriers to content creation”, alongside improvements to infrastructure and manufacturing. Malhotra said: “FY26 contains no real surprises and is one of the rare stocks that is achieving volume and price growth out there.”