ASOS Shares Surge as Womenswear Drives 50 Percent Profit Jump

ASOS delivered its biggest share-price gain since November 2025 on Wednesday after reporting a roughly 50 percent jump in first-half underlying profit, with womenswear emerging as the clearest proof point that CEO José Antonio Ramos Calamonte's turnaround is gaining real traction.

Shares jumped 14.2% by 08:56 GMT, on track for their strongest single-day move since November 2025. The surge came after a bruising stretch: the stock had been down 25% year-to-date through Tuesday's close, and the move could signal that investors are beginning to re-evaluate the trajectory of the company's recovery.

The fashion retailer posted an approximate 50% increase in adjusted EBITDA year on year, including what it described as the "negative impact" of US President Trump's IEEPA tariffs. ASOS attributed the profit improvement to tightened cost control, improved gross margin, and a lower returns rate, with adjusted gross margin rising 330 basis points to 48.5% as its new commercial model and the expansion of its flexible fulfilment model continued to bear fruit.

The headline profit number arrived despite real pressure on sales volume. The profit surge came despite a 9% decline in the online retailer's gross merchandise value, which includes retail sales and partner fulfilment revenue, net of returns. In the UK, ASOS's largest market, GMV fell 5% from a year earlier, a smaller drop than across the group, while womenswear sales improved 10 percentage points from the second half of last year.

That womenswear improvement is the number Calamonte wants the market focused on. "We are seeing improvements in new customer growth and strong performance in our womenswear business, both of which are encouraging lead indicators for sales growth," he said. In its top four markets, the UK, US, Germany, and France, ASOS grew new customer numbers by 2% from last year.

In the trading update, Calamonte said the first half showed "continued progress on executing our strategic priorities across relevant fashion product, inspirational shopping experience and an efficient operating model," with the result being the approximately 50% year-on-year increase in underlying profitability. On the product-discovery side, management pointed to a revamped app as central to the push: "The enhancements we have made to the customer experience, including our revitalised app, are helping people to find not just items, but outfits, styled just for them."

Under Calamonte, ASOS has been seeking to win back younger shoppers while cutting costs to boost profitability as competition from cheaper Chinese rivals intensifies. Shein looms large in that competitive picture, and analysts remain divided on whether Wednesday's results represent durable momentum or a single strong data point. Berenberg struck a cautiously positive note, saying "We are constructive on ASOS's ongoing recovery potential," citing free delivery and returns along with the retailer's clear position as a multi-brand platform with exclusive lines.

The setback last November, when a larger-than-expected revenue decline weighed on sentiment and raised questions around the pace of progress under Calamonte, is still fresh for investors. ASOS maintained its full-year profit guidance in the trading update, though the Business of Fashion noted the company expects profit to land at the low end of that range. The profit structure is clearly improving; the question now is whether womenswear's momentum can pull overall sales volume back up with it.