Imperial Brands Is Well-Positioned to Generate Robust Free Cash Flow and Return It to Shareholders

Imperial Brands has positioned itself as a fast follower in next-generation products while strengthening its share in its most important markets. This makes sense, given its relatively smaller size compared with peers like Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco, which leaves it less financial capacity to lead innovation. Although this means Imperial will be more exposed to cigarettes (we forecast NGP will contribute just 6% of net sales in fiscal 2030), it also means that it can maximize its free cash flow generation and returns to shareholders.