Shares in Gear4Music Holdings PLC (LON:G4M) rose 23% on Tuesday morning, reaching a crescendo of 248p after the music retailer posted healthy profit growth in the first half of the financial year.
Total sales were up 16% year on year to £49.4mln in the six months to September 30th, with gross profits increased by 29% to £12.4mln.
READ: Gear4Music swings to loss but says tune is changing in new year
The online retailer said its international business, which operates in Europe and the rest of the world, grew by a third to £24.6mln, with UK sales up a more modest 3% to £24.8mln.
Last year G4M swung to a loss after being held back as its distribution centre in York reached maximum capacity during the peak trading period between Black Friday and Christmas.
The York-based seller of musical instruments said “by cutting out less profitable sales and focusing on higher-margin products” it had boosted gross profit margins back up to 2018 levels.
It added that work has been done during the year with its warehousing and infrastructure teams to ensure there is a “robust logistics operation” in place for peak season.
Chief executive Andrew Wass said: “International sales growth continues to be strong, and whilst the UK market remains highly competitive, we have returned to a more profitable margin structure and believe that this is the right strategy from which to grow our revenues going forward.”