GB Group warns of margin hit from investment, shares fall
By Josh White
Date: Tuesday 02 Jun 2026
(Sharecast News) - GB Group shares fell on Tuesday after the identity and location technology company said a one-off £6m investment in its GBG Go platform would hit margins next year, overshadowing higher underlying earnings and improving revenue momentum.
The FTSE 250 group expects adjusted operating margins to fall to between 21% and 22% in the year ending 31 March 2027, from 23.7% in 2026, as it accelerates GBG Go's product roadmap.
It said margins should recover to 23% to 24% in 2028 and exceed 24% over the medium term.
For the year ended 31 March, revenue rose 0.8% to £285.0m, or 3.2% on a constant-currency basis. Adjusted operating profit edged up 0.7% to £67.5m, while adjusted diluted earnings per share increased 9.3% to 19.0p.
On a statutory basis, GBG swung to an operating loss of £68.1m from a £22.7m profit, while loss before tax was £74.5m against a £15.7m profit a year earlier.
The loss was mainly driven by a £73.1m non-cash goodwill impairment against Identity Americas and a £16.5m write-off linked to the retirement of its legacy Compliance platform.
Chief executive Dev Dhiman said 2026 had been "a year of considerable progress", with GBG returning Americas Identity to growth and seeing strong demand for GBG Go.
"Our simplified operating model is driving efficiency and platform scalability," he said. "The foundations we have built, a scalable, global platform, and a high-performance culture, are now translating into tangible results with growth accelerating."
GBG said its core Identity and Location businesses delivered combined constant-currency revenue growth of 5.7% in the second half, excluding legacy Compliance revenue.
Americas Identity returned to growth in the fourth quarter, while GBG Go secured more than 100 customer contracts and had a pipeline of more than 225 qualified leads.
The board proposed an unchanged final dividend of 4.4p per share.
Cash conversion fell to 87% from 91%, while net debt rose to £80.1m from £48.5m, reflecting £45m of share buybacks, the DataTools acquisition, exceptional transformation costs and the prior-year final dividend.
Looking ahead, GBG said it expected mid-single-digit revenue growth in 2027, supported by continued improvement in the Americas, new products and market opportunities linked to AI-driven fraud.
At 1235 BST, shares in GB Group were down 10.34% at 221p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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