Pound’s dive helps cigarette firm Imperial Brands make a packet

The Brexit vote has been good for Imperial Brands, Britain’s second biggest tobacco company.

The firm behind Winston and Golden Virginia said profits in the first half of the year would be 13%-14% higher because of the fall in sterling since the vote.

The pound is down 17% against the dollar since June.

Imps has also launched a £300 million investment plan to drive growth in its specialist brands.

That initiative leaves guidance on profits for the full year unchanged as it offsets the currency gain.

Imps is regarded as a takeover target, with Japan Tobacco most often cited as a bidder.

Investment bank Jefferies said it sees “an increasing probability of a take-out over the next 12 months”.

British American Tobacco’s recent deal to buy out Reynolds in the US is the spur to the Imps takeover talk.

Imps recently lost a battle with shareholders over a potential £3 million pay rise for chief executive Alison Cooper. Investors were opposed to the deal, noting that Cooper negotiated a pay rise recently.

“The early results of our investment programme are encouraging, with improved market share trends in many of our priority markets,” the company said.

Shares today moved up 36p to 3861p. That leaves Imperial valued at £37 billion