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Judges Scientific PLC on Tuesday said its 2025 performance was below expectations, as costs offset revenue gains, weighing on the bottom line. The London-based firm buys and develops companies in the scientific instrument sector. Its annual revenue rose 9.1% to £145.8 million from £133.6 million in 2024. Pretax profit, however, fell 32% to £8.9 million from £13.0 million. Operating costs ticked up to £131.9 million from £116.9 million. Interest expense also grew to £5.6 million from £4.1 million, while tax charges more than doubled to £5.1 million from £2.2 million on-year. As a result, Judges Scientific’s attributable profit was roughly half the previous year’s level, slipping to £5.5 million from £10.4 million. Adjusted operating profit remained broadly flat at £28.0 million, excluding £9.7 million of amortisation, a £4.2 million impairment and a £1.4 million reduction in the fair value of an interest swap asset. Nonetheless, the company has proposed to hike its final dividend to 82.3 pence per share from 74.8p. This brings 2025’s total dividend to 115p per share, up 10% from 104.5p on-year. Judges Scientific shares rose 0.8% to 4,050.00 pence on Tuesday morning in London, but are down 49% over the past 12 months. Deputy Chair Ralph Elman commented: ‘2025 was another difficult year. Despite starting with a solid order book and delivering a Geotek coring expedition in the first quarter, the group subsequently experienced a stark reduction in order intake in the USA, its largest market, as a result of uncertainties around federal funding for scientific research. Additionally, despite general resilience in industrial-focused markets, H2 saw reduced investments in offshore wind which previously had been a strong growth driver.’ The company said it was starting the new year ‘with a lower-than-desired order book’ and order intake in 2026 so far down 17% on-year, with the 2025 comparator not reflecting the impact of a freeze on health research funding in the US. Though this has been restored, ‘uncertainty remains on when funds will flow,’ Judges cautioned. It expects a challenging backdrop in 2026, but insisted: ‘Fundamental drivers of our business and of our strategic model are unaffected.’ ‘Actions have been taken to improve those areas within our control,’ added Elman. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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