Operating Margin - 4imprint Group PLC (SWB:IMW)

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Price: 43 EUR 0.94%

Market Cap: 789.2m EUR

11%

Current

10%

Average

2.1%

Industry

Operating Margin represents how efficiently a company is able to generate profit through its core operations.

Higher ratios are generally better, illustrating the company is efficient in its operations and is good at turning sales into profits.

Operating Margin

11%

Operating Profit

148.9m

Revenue

1.4B

Operating Margin Across Competitors

Country		Company	Market Cap	Operating Margin
UK		4imprint Group PLC LSE:FOUR	1.1B GBP	11%
IN	B	Bright Outdoor Media Ltd BSE:543831	10.8T INR	19%
FR		Publicis Groupe SA PAR:PUB	22.3B EUR	15%
US		Omnicom Group Inc NYSE:OMC	25.7B USD	15%
UK		Informa PLC LSE:INF	11.5B GBP	20%
CN	F	Focus Media Information Technology Co Ltd SZSE:002027	105.6B CNY	47%
US		Interpublic Group of Companies Inc NYSE:IPG	9.2B USD	14%
HK		QMMM Holdings Ltd NASDAQ:QMMM	6.8B USD	-76%
JP		Dentsu Group Inc TSE:4324	884.9B JPY	12%
UK		WPP PLC LSE:WPP	3.7B GBP	8%
US	N	NIQ Global Intelligence PLC NYSE:NIQ	4.7B USD	2%

4imprint Group PLC
Glance View

Economic Moat

Narrow

Market Cap

789.2m EUR

Industry

Media

4imprint Group PLC operates as a compelling narrative in the world of promotional products, deftly straddling the space between creativity and business acumen. Headquartered in London, 4imprint's roots date back to the turn of the millennium. The company has carved a niche by effectively marrying traditional marketing tactics with contemporary technology, focusing primarily on the North American market—its largest and most significant. Clients, spanning small businesses to large corporations, rely on 4imprint to supply a vast array of promotional items, such as branded merchandise and corporate gifts. These items, engraved with logos or customized messages, serve as tangible touchpoints that enhance brand visibility and engagement, driving customer loyalty in a manner that digital marketing sometimes struggles to achieve. The secret to 4imprint’s profitability lies in its atypical approach to the typically staid promotional product sector. By avoiding large manufacturing overheads, the company instead partners with a plethora of third-party vendors who produce the custom items they sell. This asset-light model allows 4imprint to focus on its core strengths: marketing, customer service, and efficient distribution. The company operates an innovative and robust direct marketing model that combines catalog, online, and direct sales strategies. This efficient, streamlined operation ensures rapid delivery of quality products, which in turn encourages repeat business and builds a loyal customer base. Through its strategic alliances with logistic partners and an unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction, 4imprint propels itself forward, demonstrating how traditional marketing tools can still wield significant influence in an increasingly digital commerce landscape.

View IMW Analysis

IMW Intrinsic Value

What is Intrinsic Value?

Economic Moat is a concept popularized by Warren Buffett to describe a company's durable competitive advantage. It represents the 'moat' that protects a company from competitors and helps it sustain profitability over the long term. Our analysis of the past 10 years showed that companies with a wide economic moat significantly outperformed the market, delivering +645% returns compared to +189% for the S&P 500.

Our research into Economic Moat performance spans the past 10 years and focuses on companies with a wide economic moat. For this analysis, we calculated the average stock price returns of these companies, comparing them to the performance of the S&P 500 index over the same period.

The results were compelling: wide moat stocks achieved a remarkable +645% average return, compared to +188% for the broader market. This difference highlights the long-term benefits of investing in businesses that can maintain their market position and pricing power over time.

Note: This research does not account for survivorship bias. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Determining whether a company has an economic moat requires both a deep dive into financial metrics and a qualitative assessment of its competitive position. Our analysts conduct a rigorous evaluation that focuses on identifying structural advantages that enable a company to sustain profitability and defend its market share over the long term.

The process begins with an analysis of a company’s historical financial performance. We assess how consistently the company has generated returns above its cost of capital and whether those returns have been stable or improving. However, financial performance alone doesn’t reveal the full picture. To understand the sources of these advantages, we evaluate five key drivers of economic moats:

Network Effect: We analyze whether the value of a company’s product or service grows as its user base expands. Platforms like payment systems or marketplaces benefit from this self-reinforcing.

Switching Costs: We assess whether customers face significant costs or disruptions when switching to a competitor’s product or service. High switching costs create customer stickiness and provide pricing power.

Intangible Assets: Strong brands, patents, and regulatory licenses can protect a company’s market position by creating barriers for competitors or enabling premium pricing. For example, a well-recognized consumer brand may command higher customer loyalty and margins.

Efficient scale: Occurs when a market is optimally served by one or a few players, making it unprofitable for new entrants to compete. This typically happens in industries with high fixed costs or geographic constraints, such as utilities or pipelines.

Cost Advantage: Companies with structural cost advantages can produce goods or services at a lower cost than their competitors, enabling them to offer competitive pricing or maintain higher margins. These advantages often arise from economies of scale, superior supply chain management, or proprietary technology. Firms like Walmart leverage their massive scale to negotiate better terms with suppliers, allowing them to undercut competitors on price.

By examining these factors in combination with a company’s financial performance and market positioning, we classify each company into one of three categories:

This rigorous evaluation ensures that our moat ratings are both comprehensive and reliable, giving investors the tools they need to make well-informed, long-term decisions.

The AI Assistant may sometimes provide inaccurate information.

Make your own investment decisions or consult a licensed financial advisor.

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4imprint Group PLC
SWB:IMW