Just how deep the ardour of Warhammer’s die-hard fan base runs is being tested in a way that it rarely has been in Games Workshop’s 47-year history. The hobbyist retailer is in the grips of the heaviest downturn the shares have suffered since joining the market almost 30 years ago, now down 47 per cent from last year’s peak.
Racy valuations are naturally less palatable in the face of rampant inflation and rapidly rising interest rates, and the Nottingham-based fantasy figurine maker and retailer had garnered a valuation to match the most dominant of the US tech darlings. A stellar record of earnings growth in recent years has resulted in harsh punishment this year.
Games Workshop is at the mercy of the same margin pressures