Mortgage Advice Bureau (Holdings) (LSE:MAB1) announced it now expects adjusted pre-tax profit of approximately £38m for the year ending 31 December, down from market consensus of £43.4m, ahead of its interim results on 22 September.
The technology-driven UK property finance group said the downgrade stems largely from Fluent, the group's mainstream first-charge mortgage business, where new contractual lead flows expected to drive a step-up in 2026 performance have been delayed, cutting Fluent's expected contribution to group profit by approximately £5m.
Purchase activity has also failed to recover as anticipated at the start of the year, with UK purchase transactions down 3% in the first seven months of 2026 and mortgage approvals for house purchase falling 15% year-on-year in July, according to Bank of England data.
For the first half, MAB now expects adjusted pre-tax profit of approximately £14.8m, slightly ahead of the £14.6m flagged in its July trading update and up from £14.5m in the first half of 2025.
"While these delays have pushed the anticipated profit growth from Fluent into 2027, the updated guidance nevertheless represents adjusted profit before tax growth of approximately 5% compared with 2025", said Peter Brodnicki, founder and chief executive.
The group said the market remains predominantly refinance-led, with product transfers continuing to account for the largest share of activity as affordability pressures persist, and it expects to report interim results on 22 September.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Mortgage Advice Bureau cut full-year 2026 profit guidance by £5.4m to £38m—12% below consensus—citing delayed lead flows at its Fluent mainstream mortgage business and a softer purchase market. The core issue is timing: Fluent's expected £5m profit uplift has slipped into 2027, and UK purchase transactions fell 3% in the first seven months while mortgage approvals for house purchase dropped 15% year-on-year in July, leaving the group refinance-dependent in a market where margin pressure persists.
The downgrade narrows 2026 profit growth to ~5% versus 2025, well below what the market had priced in. While management frames this as a timing issue—pushing Fluent's recovery into 2027—the underlying market weakness (purchase activity down, affordability pressures ongoing) and delayed contractual lead flows suggest execution risk extends beyond a simple calendar shift.
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