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Investing.com -- Shares of Judges Scientific (LON:JDG) climbed 2.3% as the scientific instrument supplier reported its full-year 2024 results, which were largely in line with market expectations and at the midpoint of their previous guidance.
The company’s sales outperformed forecasts by 4%, although earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization (EBITA) were 1% below projections. Earnings per share (EPS) exceeded expectations due to a lower-than-anticipated tax rate, with dividends per share (DPS) meeting predictions.
The firm’s adjusted net debt was 4% better than analyst forecasts at Jefferies, thanks to a stronger working capital performance, leading to operating cash flow that was 33% ahead of expectations.
Cash conversion for the full year stood at 122%, a significant improvement over the 90% in FY23 and 63% in the first half of FY24. The results remain unaudited solely due to auditor workflow issues, a growing concern in the UK.
Looking ahead to FY25, Judges Scientific anticipates performance in line with market expectations, with no change to consensus forecasts expected. The organic order book as of December 31, 2024, represented 19 weeks of sales, buoyed by large deferred orders.
Year-to-date order intake is now slightly ahead year-on-year (YoY), with a trailing 12-month order intake since June 2024 up 8% YoY, excluding coring. The company expects the first half of FY25 to be more profitable, accounting for approximately 55% of the year’s performance, due to the coring contract.
Jefferies analysts commented on the company’s performance and outlook: "Judges’ results are as expected, and FY25F performance is guided to be in line with consensus expectations, which is helpful, given current industry uncertainty, and implies some healthy margin recovery this year.
However, while Judges benefits from holding a diverse portfolio of businesses and we can also generally count on some M&A to supplement performance during the year, we remain concerned around downside risks to orders in the US."
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