Up 12% in the present day, this is an ideal FTSE 250 progress share to think about!

To date, 2025 has proved a depressing 12 months for tech shares. However Softcat (LSE:SCT) sprung again to life in the present day (Wednesday) after the FTSE 250 share upgraded revenue expectations for the complete 12 months.

At £18.18 per share, Softcat’s share worth is up 12% in midweek buying and selling, and again inside placing distance of final June’s report peaks of £18.55.

Like different tech shares, the knowledge expertise (IT) specialist stays on the mercy of broader financial situations and doubtlessly crushing world commerce tariffs.

However given its sturdy momentum, ought to traders think about shopping for Softcat shares in the present day?

Document earnings

Softcat — an knowledgeable in a number of IT segments together with networking, cyber safety, and cloud computing — noticed gross invoiced revenue leap 19.3% within the six months to December, to £1.51bn. Income, in the meantime, rose 16.8% over the interval, to £545.6m.

The corporate says these will increase mirrored “broad-based success throughout expertise areas and prospects“. Its buyer base rose 1.4% over the interval to round 10,300.

Earnings additionally hit new report half-year peaks, with gross revenue and working revenue up 12.1% and 10.4% respectively, at £220.2m and £73.7m.

This estimate-topping efficiency means Softcat in the present day upgraded its full-year forecasts.

For the 12 months to June, it says “we proceed to anticipate to ship one other 12 months of double-digit gross revenue progress… with working revenue progress now anticipated to be low double-digit, up from excessive single-digit beforehand“.

Room for progress

Softcat’s momentum stays spectacular regardless of the difficult financial backcloth. Its success has been helped by ongoing recruitment — and particularly in its technical, specialist, and gross sales help departments — to nurture relationships with current prospects.

Group head depend grew 6% within the first half, and Softcat is tipping full-year progress of 6% to eight%.

Encouragingly for traders, Softcat has stated it’s focusing on “additional focused strategic funding to underpin future progress“. A robust steadiness sheet provides the corporate loads of scope to flex its muscular tissues and develop employees numbers.

Money conversion rose to 110.9% within the first half from 101.1% a 12 months earlier. This in flip meant money and money equivalents elevated by £28.5m over the interval, to £141m.

Softcat’s choice to boost the interim dividend 4.7%, to eight.9p per share, additional underlines its sturdy monetary foundations.

Costly however distinctive

Softcat, then, clearly has the wind in its sails. Nevertheless it’s vital to think about that its share worth’s excessive valuation has elevated additional following Wednesday’s leap.

Metropolis analysts assume group earnings will rise 8% in monetary 2025, that means the agency trades on a ahead price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 28.3 occasions. That’s greater than double the FTSE 250 common, and will go away Softcat shares weak to a correction if market jitters resurface.

But regardless of this, I consider the enterprise is value severe consideration from long-term traders. Given its sturdy report of success throughout the private and non-private sectors, and expectations of additional progress within the digital financial system, it’s nonetheless one in every of London’s most engaging progress shares in my ebook.