Judges Scientific revenue rises, outlook more uncertain

21st Mar 2024 07:20

(Sharecast News) - Scientific instrument sector investor Judges Scientific reported a 20% uptick in 2023 revenue in its final results on Thursday, reaching £136.1m, although its shares were sliding on a more uncertain outlook for 2024.

The AIM-traded firm said adjusted operating profit also saw a rise of 16% to £34.8m, while tax on adjusted earnings increased 41% to £6.9m.

Adjusted basic earnings per share climbed 3% to 374.6p.

Cash generated from operations totalled £31.3 million, marking a 30% increase year-on-year.

The company declared a final dividend per share of 68p, a notable rise from 2022's 59p.

Judges said its organic revenue saw advanced 15% on the year, while organic order intake rose 7%.

The organic order book stood at 17 weeks, slightly lower than the prior year's 21.1 weeks, with a total order book at 16.2 weeks.

On the strategic front, Judges made two small acquisitions during the year - Henniker Scientific and Bossa Nova Vision - for total consideration of £3.6m.

Additionally, the executive team was bolstered with the appointment of Dr Tim Prestidge as group business development director in February last year, alongside Sue Nyman joining the board as an independent non-executive director.

Looking ahead, Judges Scientific said it started 2024 with a solid organic order book, although the timing of the next Geotek Coring expedition and its revenue recognition remained uncertain.

The board said the supply chain had returned to normal, but year-to-date organic orders were slightly behind the comparative period in 2023, which included a large post-lockdown contribution from China.

Despite that, the board said it was comfortable with current market expectations.

"The group has again beaten its previous records in organic order intake, revenue, adjusted operating profit, cash generation and adjusted earnings per share in an improving but still challenging environment," said chairman Alex Hambro.

"We are delighted that the proposed dividend for the full year has now equalled the group's original IPO price."

At 1017 GMT, shares in Judges Scientific were down 6.47% at 10,850p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.