I see some cracking potential buys in the FTSE 250 for 2026, after underperformance against the FTSE 100 over the past five years. Some of that will have been because the mid-cap index is more UK-focused, and doesn’t offer the same global safety margins. But as the UK economy recovers and inflation and interest rates fall, I can see a renewed focus on smaller stocks.
Using AI search tools turns up a good few candidates. So here I’m checking out three I like the look of. And they’re very different to each other.
Housing stock
Vistry Group (LSE: VTY) is down 35% in the past five years. And the Vistry share price has had a more volatile ride than most in the sector. But the past 12 months brought a 14.5% rise. And November’s trading update said “activity levels have continued to build through the second half of the year.”
CEO Greg Fitzgerald added that “the group’s overall sales rate since 1 July is up 11% compared to the same period last year.” The company expects a year-on-year profit rise for the full year, and predicts a fall in net debt too. Analyst forecast strong earnings growth out to 2027.
As a relatively small player in the sector, Vistry could exhibit more share price weakness. But I reckon those who see long-term strength in building should seriously consider it.
Jammy future?
How about a FTSE 250 ‘jam tomorrow’ growth stock next? My eyes fall on Oxford Nanopore (LSE: ONT). The share price has plunged 77% over five years, reflecting the lack of bottom-line profit on the near horizon — thought forecasts suggest we could be very close to break-even by 2027.
And on the bright side, this year’s first half saw gross profit rise 24% to £61.4m. It was still overshadowed by a pre-tax loss of £69m, but that’s down a bit. The balance sheet, however, showed cash and equivalents of £194m. Is that enough to see the company through to first profits? It might indeed be.
The company’s DNA/RNA sequencing technology looks very promising. And with analysts hinting that profit days might not be far away, I rate this as one of the better risky growth stocks to consider.
Promo profits
Based in the UK, 4imprint (LSE: FOUR) is a major supplier of promotional goods to the American market. That meant a kicking from Donald Trump’s tariffs. And March’s 2024 full-year update already showed orders for the first two months of 2025 down a bit. Chairman Paul Moody even then spoke of “potential tariff impacts.”
We’ve had a 20% share price fall in 2025. But that still leaves 4imprint stock up 46% over five years. And to me that shows resilience in the face of international trade difficulties.
Analysts see a few years of slow earnings, so share weakness could go on for a while. But for those who share my thought that the US tariff regime has to crumble — because it’s hurting US consumers, if nothing else — this has to be an opportunity to consider a long-term investment.
