Mulberry unveiled a recession-defying performance as pre-tax profits soared 16% to £1.5m in the six months to September 30.

32.3m at the luxury accessories group, and the UK delivered a stellar 39% like-for-like sales increase.

Altium Securities analyst David Stoddart branded the stock a “strong buy”, noting that “the incredibly strong short-term performance certainly helps to underpin the investment case.”

On the back of the results, Stoddart raised Mulberry’s target price from 150p to 260p.

In the 10 weeks to September 5 the high-octane growth continued as UK retail like-for-likes rocketed 46% and the retailer reported strong demand for its new Alexa range of women’s bags. Mulberry also revealed that its wholesale books for spring/summer 2010 are level against the comparable period in 2008.

Mulberry chairman and chief executive Godfrey Davis said: “Since September demand has continued to grow for both the retail and wholesale channels. The outlook is positive and on current trends the results for the year will be substantially ahead of market expectations.”