Shares of Wise Group Plc jumped 8% on Friday following annual results that showed profit margins ahead of the firm's medium-term targets and a $500 million buyback plan aimed at returning capital to shareholders.
For the year ended March 31, Wise reported income before tax of $660.4 million on net revenue of $2.50 billion, a 19% increase year-on-year. The company said its profit-before-tax margin reached 26.4%, which sits above its stated medium-term guidance range of 20-25%.
Analysts at Bank of America, who have a "buy" rating with a $16.40 price objective, noted that Wise's profit before tax was 6.6% higher than their estimate and 1.3% ahead of consensus. They highlighted a $70 million one-off U.S. GAAP adjustment related to foreign exchange on certain government bonds as the primary drag on operating income, which Wise reported at $590.7 million.
On customer and activity metrics, Wise reported that active customers rose 21% to 19 million. Cross-border volume climbed 31% to $243.5 billion while the cross-border take rate held at 0.52%, down six basis points year-on-year. Card spend grew 37% to $43.6 billion, and customer holdings expanded 40% to $39.0 billion.
Transaction revenue increased to $1.89 billion. Net interest income on customer balances, after paying out $196.9 million in interest expense to customers, contributed $609.2 million to net revenue.
Chief executive Kristo Käärmann described the company as supporting 19 million people and businesses moving money globally, and noted operational speed, saying 75% of payments in the fourth quarter were completed in under 20 seconds worldwide. Käärmann added: "With $43 trillion moved across borders by people and businesses every year, we remain focused on the opportunity ahead and building 'the' network for the world’s money."
As part of the corporate actions, Wise announced a $500 million share repurchase program for fiscal 2027. The company said approximately 40% of that program would be allocated to its recurring Employee Share Trust purchase programme to offset share-based compensation dilution. Separately, Wise allocated $470 million to repurchase 35.9 million shares during fiscal 2026.
Looking ahead, Wise guided fiscal 2027 net revenue growth to be around the middle of its 15-20% medium-term target range on a constant currency basis, on the assumption of no material change in interest paid to customers and no material changes in central bank rates. It expects income before tax margin to come in around the top of the 20-25% range.
Bank of America responded to the results and capital plan by raising its fiscal 2027 earnings per share estimate by 5.7% to 54.34 cents diluted, citing improved gross profit margins and the planned share buyback as drivers.
Separately, Wise completed its transition to a Nasdaq primary listing on May 8 via a scheme of arrangement and retained a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange.
Contextual notes
- The reported figures and guidance assume current interest paid to customers and central bank rate conditions do not change materially.
- The company identified a one-off US GAAP foreign-exchange adjustment that reduced operating income by $70 million.