Trifast LON: TRI said its FY 2026 results reflected lower revenue but improved margins, stronger cash generation and continued progress on its strategic repositioning, as management pointed to further margin expansion and a return to profitable top-line growth in FY 2027.
Chief Executive Iain Percival said FY 2026 marked the first year of the company’s “rebuild” phase, following the completion of its “recover” phase in FY 2025. He said the fasteners and C-class components supplier is shifting its portfolio toward higher-growth sectors such as smart infrastructure and medical equipment, as well as geographies including North America, India and parts of Asia.
Percival said around 60% of Trifast’s revenue is now reliant on one or both of its core value propositions: engineering solutions and supply chain simplification. He also highlighted growth in smart infrastructure, which now represents 17% of total revenue, “almost double” its share from 2024.
Revenue Falls, But Margins Improve
Chief Financial Officer Kate Ferguson said revenue for FY 2026 was £207 million, down 7.3% from the prior year, reflecting a tougher market backdrop, particularly in automotive and electric vehicle demand. She said the decline also reflected deliberate decisions to move away from lower-margin business where returns were not sufficient.
Despite the lower revenue, Trifast reported improved profitability metrics. Gross margin rose 170 basis points to 30%, while underlying EBIT increased to £16.3 million. Underlying EBIT margin improved 110 basis points to 7.8%, which Percival said was driven by value-based pricing and managing supplier and supply chain costs.
Ferguson said the company has become “leaner, more focused, and more commercially disciplined,” citing stronger pricing, procurement savings, and decisions to reprice or exit lower-margin business. Payroll costs fell 6%, headcount declined 10%, and distribution cost reductions outpaced the decline in revenue, she said.
Reported profit before tax was affected by separately disclosed items, mainly Project Ignite, the company’s digital transformation program. Ferguson said Trifast spent around £6 million on Project Ignite during the year, which was expensed rather than capitalized due to accounting treatment for cloud-based and SaaS implementation costs.
Cash Generation Strengthens Balance Sheet
Trifast reduced net debt to £16 million, while leverage fell to 0.75 times. Ferguson said cash conversion remained high and return on capital employed improved to 8.5%.
The company increased its full-year dividend to £0.019 per share, which Ferguson said reflected stronger cash generation and confidence in the outlook. During the question-and-answer session, she said dividend cover is typically three to four times and that the company expects to maintain a progressive dividend when cash generation and outlook support it.
Operating cash flow before working capital was £15.9 million, including cash investment in Project Ignite. Excluding that investment, operating cash flow was £21.4 million, ahead of the prior year. Working capital generated cash inflows, including a £6.4 million reduction in inventory and £1.8 million from receivables, though this was offset by higher FY 2025 closing payables.
Mixed Regional Performance
Ferguson said regional performance was mixed on revenue but clearer on margin quality. In the U.K. and Ireland, revenue declined around 11%, but EBIT margin improved 290 basis points to 7%. In Europe, revenue fell 7.5%, while EBIT margin improved 230 basis points to 11%.
Asia remained the main area of pressure. Revenue declined around 10%, and margins reduced to 11%. Ferguson said the region faced lower volumes and difficulty flexing the cost base quickly enough, particularly amid competitive pressure from China Auto. Trifast is reviewing its footprint and cost structure in Asia while continuing to build in more resilient segments such as medical equipment.
Percival later clarified that the company is closing, not disposing of, its Malaysia manufacturing asset. He said the site had been underutilized and exposed to challenged internal combustion engine and gearbox-related products. The company intends to pivot its Southeast Asia business toward engineering and distribution support for smart infrastructure and medical equipment.
Portfolio Shift Toward Smart Infrastructure and Medical Equipment
Automotive remains Trifast’s largest end market, but Ferguson said it remains under pressure and the company is becoming less reliant on it. Smart infrastructure was the standout area, supported by demand in data centers and broader infrastructure applications. Medical equipment also grew strongly from a smaller base.
Percival said smart infrastructure benefits from demand tied to data centers, power, water, lighting, data connectivity and HVAC applications. He said the company aims to grow smart infrastructure to 30% of its total portfolio over the mid to long term.
During the Q&A session, Percival said smart infrastructure projects generally convert faster than automotive programs and tend to involve lower volume but higher complexity, which supports Trifast’s supply chain simplification proposition. On automotive, he said the market has stabilized in the U.K. and continental Europe, remains challenged in North America, and is also challenging in Asia due in part to Chinese EV manufacturers taking share outside China.
Percival said Trifast is not exiting automotive, noting long-term relationships with global Tier 1 suppliers, particularly where products are agnostic to powertrain, such as seating, lighting and interior trim. However, he said the company does not want to compete as a component-only supplier.
FY 2027 Outlook and Investment Priorities
Looking ahead, Percival said FY 2027 has begun in line with the board’s expectations. He said the first half is expected to be similar to FY 2026, with new business opportunities expected to contribute in the second half and support growth over the full year.
He said Trifast has the strongest pipeline quality and value since he and Ferguson joined the business. As examples, he cited recent customer meetings in China that generated more than 40 opportunities for profitable top-line growth in smart infrastructure and medical equipment, as well as similar momentum in India.
Trifast is investing in India, including sales capability, implementation of Microsoft D365 through Project Ignite and a planned move to a larger distribution center that will also house an innovation and customer experience center. Percival said India delivered 90% growth in the first quarter of the year, though from a low base.
The company also remains committed to expansion in the Middle East. Percival said Trifast’s project in Saudi Arabia remains on track despite conflict in the region, with operations expected to begin in the Kingdom by the end of the year.
Management also said Trifast will consider selective bolt-on acquisitions where they support higher-growth geographies, strategic sectors such as smart infrastructure and medical equipment, or capabilities in engineering and supply chain simplification. Percival said acquisition targets should not be turnarounds, but businesses that can become margin accretive and accelerate the company’s strategy.
Percival closed by reiterating that Trifast remains on track to deliver double-digit EBIT margins over the medium term, supported by margin management, focused growth, operational efficiency and organizational effectiveness.
About Trifast LON: TRI
About Trifast
In 2023, TR celebrated 50 years of business with a proud heritage of serving customers with engineered fastening supply chain solutions; Our skills lie in the design, engineering, manufacture, and distribution of high-quality engineered fastenings and Category 'C' components principally for major global assembly industries.
As an international business we can provide customer support from across key regions in the UK & Ireland, Asia, Europe, and North America. In addition to our service locations, we operate manufacturing facilities focused on high volume cold forged fasteners and special parts.
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