Shares in Softcat (LON: SCT) surged over 8% on Friday after the UK IT infrastructure provider delivered a bullish third-quarter trading update, raising its full-year profit guidance for the second time this year.
The stock climbed from a previous close of 1,442p to a session high of 1,621p, before settling around 1,558p in trading on the London Stock Exchange — a gain of approximately 8% — reflecting strong investor enthusiasm for the update.
Strong Double-Digit Growth Across the Board
In its trading statement for the three months ended 30 April 2026, Softcat reported “strong double-digit year-on-year growth” in both gross profit and underlying operating profit.
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The company also upgraded its full-year underlying operating profit growth guidance to mid-teens, a meaningful step up from its previous expectation of high single-digit growth.
The company attributed the outperformance to broad-based demand across its customer base, with particular strength in its corporate segment.
Two key tailwinds were highlighted: accelerating customer investment in AI-enabled infrastructure, and a pull-forward of orders driven by memory component shortages — a dynamic that has benefited resellers able to source and deliver hardware at pace.
AI Driving Investment Across IT Infrastructure
Chief Executive Graham Charlton said the company’s “uniquely broad offering” — spanning datacentre, network, security, data and automation layers across hardware, software and services — positions it well to help customers navigate increasingly complex technology environments.
“The impact of AI on technology is driving investment and innovation across all elements of IT infrastructure,” Charlton said, adding that Softcat’s depth of expertise across more than 10,000 customers gives it “an unrivalled depth of expertise to draw on just when CIOs and IT managers need that help and insight most.”
Outlook
Analysts will note the profit upgrade comes despite Softcat flagging ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty and the unpredictable nature of memory shortages as risks to the outlook heading into the final quarter. Nevertheless, the Board said it remains “encouraged by the momentum in the business and prospects for continued market share gains.”
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