Slides
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Interim Results Six months ended 30 June 2026 23 September 2026
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Judges Scientific: a buy and build group in scientific instrument markets Long term drivers Low capital use Large deal pool Shareholder value Three pillars of shareholder value Growth strategy | buy and build capital allocation Execution of strategy 2005 – 2025 25 acquisitions 7% CAGR Organic revenue Total dividend distributions 9.8x 2005 admission price 19% CAGR Total revenue Extensive and diversified global customer base Industry Other research and compliance OEMs Universities 23% CAGR Total EBIT 8% CAGR Organic EBIT 2
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An experienced management team with a broad set of skills Tim Prestidge Chief Executive Office Rik Armitage Group Acquisitions Executive John Dunne Portfolio Chief Executive 3 Brad Ormsby Chief Financial Officer Ian Wilcock Group Commercial Director
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Challenging markets weighed on H1 performance | Fundamentals intact 4 External headwinds: Orders and revenue materially affected by continued uncertainties in US research funding, postponement of offshore wind investments, and delays to China’s tax exemption processes Addressing underperformance: Solid progress at businesses experiencing product-specific challenges Concentrated growth: Eight businesses grew, supported by internal growth initiatives and positive market dynamics in semiconductors, battery development, and other industrial research markets Ongoing focus on controlling the controllables: Costs reduced in underperforming businesses while continuing to selectively invest in talent and innovation to support recovery and growth in other businesses Underlying fundamentals intact: • Solid order book • 90% cash conversion despite significantly lower profitability • 10% increase in the interim dividend Strategy unchanged: • Disciplined acquisition process • Structured and decentralised organic growth drivers • Local definition and execution of market-led growth strategies • Continued investment for long- term returns A weak H1 2026: Revenue down 21% and Adjusted EPS down 72%
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Performance Review
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2018 2017 2018 2017 Highlights Starting 2024 with a solid Organic order book Revenue (LFL*) -13% Total revenue down 21% Order intake -12% Organic order book 17.3 weeks Adjusted operating profit -66% £4.8 million Adjusted EPS -72% 39.0p Cash from operations £4.3m (H1 2025: £12.3m) Interim dividend +10% 36.0p per share (2025: 32.7p) Adjusted net debt £45.3m (31 December 2025: £42.6m) Cash balances £15.6m 6 *LFL – like-for-like excluding H1 25 Geotek coring
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HY 2026 (£m) HY 2025 (£m) Variance (£m) Variance (%) Revenue 55.7 70.2 (14.5) (21)% Operating costs (50.9) (55.9) (5.0) (9)% Adjusted operating profit 4.8 14.3 (9.5) (66)% Interest (1.6) (1.7) Adjusted PBT 3.2 12.6 (9.4) (75)% Taxation (0.6) (2.9) Adjusted PAT 2.6 9.7 (7.1) (73)% Adjusting items (post tax) (3.9) (4.6) Statutory result (1.3) 5.1 (6.4) Performance 13% LFL revenue decline (ex. Coring) (21% total) Operating margin of 8.6% (H1 2025: 20.4%) Effective tax rate 18.0% - effect of UK patent box Adjusting items - primarily acquisition amortisation
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Order intake • Order intake down 12% vs H1 25 • Organic geography: – North America down 7% – China down 47% – Rest of Europe down 20% – Rest of the World up 12% – UK up 5% • Order book of 17.3 weeks at 30 June 2026 (30 June 25: 17.4 weeks; 31 Dec 25: 15.7 weeks) • Orders now only 1% behind prior YTD
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0 10 20 2025 contribution* Organic growthOrganic decline Acquisitions 2026 contribution* *Contribution is EBIT from trading subsidiaries before central costs Profit bridge Significant short-term decline in profitability at 13 companies Impact of US federal funding cuts and delays to China tax exemptions Growth at 8 companies No coring expedition
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Balance Sheet summary Jun 26 (£m) Dec 25 (£m) Cash (cash and o/d) 15.6 19.4 Debt (excl. IFRS 16) (60.9) (62.0) Adjusted net debt (45.3) (42.6) Working Capital 28.4 23.3 Other assets / liabilities 100.1 103.0 Net assets 83.2 83.7 Balance sheet and cash flow Cashflow summary H1 2026 (£m) H1 2025 (£m) Cash generated from ops 4.3 12.3 Tax paid (1.9) (1.5) Net interest (2.5) (2.4) Capex (inc. internal development) (2.7) (2.9) Capex (acquisition related) (0.1) - Drawdown for acquisitions - - Repayment of borrowings (1.0) (4.0) Equity dividends - - Other 0.1 (0.5) Movement in cash (3.8) 1.0 Leverage of 2.1 times (31 Dec 25: 1.5 times) Working capital increase – effect of low H1 revenue and preparation for H2 revenue phasing Cash conversion of 90% (H1 2025: 86%) Armfield DB pension scheme - buy- out completed in August 2026
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*excludes central costs and properties, and the effect of R&D capitalisation 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% ROTIC (Trailing 12 months)* GDS 2012 Scientifica 2013FTT Return on Total Invested Capital Geotek 2022 Teer 2024
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Group revenue Group revenue by geography FTT Sircal PFO GDS Armfield DiaStron Geotek Rockwash Quorum UHV Deben Scientifica CoolLED EWB Oxford Cryo Moorfield THT Korvus Teer Coatings Henniker >85% of revenue exported Group orders by geography Well diversified across the business Group revenue by end market Geotechnical Life science/semicon Industry optimisation Other 12
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12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 FY cash generation Dividend EPS and Dividends (Excluding special dividends)Revenue and profit Cash generation - 50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Revenue H1 Revenue H2 Operating Profit H1 Operating Profit total Special dividend Financial history - 100.0 200.0 300.0 400.0 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 13 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 HY FY Cash conversion H1 cash generation 90% cash conversion
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Growth Strategy
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15 Growth Strategy | buy and build capital allocation Investments in organic growth Progressive dividend policy Investments in acquisitions 1 2 3 Progressive dividend policy 3
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• Attributes of target businesses: – Strong exporters in global niche markets for scientific instruments and techniques – Cultural alignment: innovation, entrepreneurialism, openness, frugality – Robust margins demonstrate differentiation and pricing power – Generate sustainable EBIT and cashflows at high ROS% • Deal parameters: – Pay 3x to 7x EBIT (typically 4x to 6x) according to size – Flexibility in deal structure – Funded with cash and debt, borrowing up to 3x EBITDA @ 3% to 8% LONG INCUBATION CRYSTALLISATION ERRATIC WE AIM TO DO DEALS … … BUT NOT ANY SPECIFIC DEAL GENERATE CASH REDUCE DEBT REPEAT 16 Acquisitions: strict discipline REPUTATION AS AN HONOURABLE ACQUIRER WE BUY HIGH QUALITY BUSINESSES THAT ARE FOR SALE No acquisition in H1 2026: “ …the Group sees a healthy pipeline of opportunities and remains confident both in the depth and vitality of its potential deal pool and in its continued ability to attract and acquire high-quality businesses at discipled EBIT multiples.”
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17 Growth Strategy | buy and build capital allocation Investments in organic growth Progressive dividend policy Investments in acquisitions 1 2 3
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Organic growth: The fundamentals of Judges’ decentralised model Strong Leadership Teams Robust Governance and Finance Controls 18 Filling Capability Gaps Leverage Groupwide Experience Promote Excellence Encourage Ambition Autonomy Long-term Focus Accountability Sustained Advantage
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Example: Diversifying long-term growth drivers 19 INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS OF SCIENTIFIC TECHNIQUES Strong Leadership Teams Filling Capability Gaps Encourage Ambition
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Example: Addressing challenges 20 Filling capability gaps Robust Governance and Finance Controls CHALLENGES IN SPECIFIC PRODUCT LINES Leverage Groupwide Experience
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Example: Inspiring Disciplined Ambition Long-term Focus 21 Strong Leadership Teams Encourage Ambition STRATEGIC PLANS AND ACTIONS
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22 Growth Strategy | buy and build capital allocation Investments in organic growth Progressive dividend policy Investments in acquisitions 1 2 3 Increase total dividend by minimum 10% annually • … subject always to appropriate cover • … and no constraint on the Group’s capacity for 1 and 2
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Outlook and Investment Case
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Outlook 24 ORDER INTAKE YTD IMPROVED TO 1% BELOW PRIOR YEAR EARLY SIGNS THAT CHINA’S TAX EXEMPTION PROCESSES ARE BEING RESOLVED CONFIDENCE IN LONG-TERM DRIVERS BUSINESS MODEL INTACT TIMING LEADS TO H2 WEIGHTING AND SOME EXECUTION RISKS SOME RESILIENT MARKETS BUT HEADWINDS CONTINUE IN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH NEXT GEOTEK CORING EXPEDITION EXPECTED NO EARLIER THAN 2028 DEMONSTRABLE PROGRESS AT UNDERPERFORMING BUSINESSES TRADING IN LINE WITH FY26 MARKET EXPECTATIONS
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Investment Case 25 Long term drivers Low capital use Large deal pool Shareholder value Robust business model pursued with discipline Earnings-enhancing acquisitions Diversified by geography and application Dividend growth 10+% for 19 years, CAGR 21%
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Q&A
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2005 2006 2006 2006 2009 2010 2011 2012 2012 KE Fire Testing Technology PE. fibreoptics Quorum Technologies UHV Design Aitchee Engineering Sircal Instruments Deben KE DevelopmentsGDS Instruments Scientifica 2020 2019 2017 2016 2016 2016 201620152013 FIRE Geotek Armfield CoolLED FIRE Dia-StronEWB Solutions Oxford CryosystemsMoorfieldTHTKorvus Technology 20202022 The Judges Group 2023 Henniker Scientific 2023 Bossa Nova Vision 2024 Luciol Instruments RockwashTeer Coatings 2024 2024 27
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28 Major shareholders – as at Sept 2026 David Cicurel (including SIPP, SIP and 67,000 non-beneficial) 618,903 9.3% Odin Global 590,000 8.9% Interactive Brokers 444,436 6.7% Charles Schwab (NY) 229,209 3.4% Liechtenstein Landesbank 218,500 3.3% Hargreaves Lansdown 210,944 3.2% Interactive Investor 204,427 3.1% Havelock London 201,607 2.3% Stephen Upton & Jacqueline Upton 185,050 2.8% EFG Harris Allday 171,067 2.6% Ruffer 168,170 2.5% Cannacord 157,033 2.4% Banque de Luxembourg 132,709 2.0%
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• Nature of our business is not capital intensive manufacturing and environmental impact is limited. • Aim to minimise environmental impact across all aspects of business, including consideration for energy consumption and packaging of instruments. • Respect, openness, honesty and integrity in all of our actions and engagement with our business owners, staff and all stakeholders. • Encourage all employees to be entrepreneurial. 40% of team are shareholders through our Share Incentive Plan. • A key priority for the Group and subsidiary management teams is that all employees must be and feel safe. • Implemented Group-wide annual independent health and safety review which evaluates compliance and provides management with feedback for continuous improvement. • Supporting equal opportunities to build a meritocratic work environment for all. • Built a good reputation in the local community dealing fairly with staff, customer and suppliers. • Active supporter of local community causes. • Adopted the principal provisions of the QCA Governance Code. • Commitment to stakeholder engagement with active engagement throughout the calendar year. Environment Our culture Health & safety Social Governance 29 Environment, Social & Governance
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31 FTT is internationally recognised as the world’s leading supplier of fire testing instrumentation and has supplied the majority of leading fire research groups and testing laboratories around the world. Our directors and senior researchers participate in UK, ISO, CEN and ASTM standardisation committees to ensure that our instruments are always compliant. These include committees dealing with construction products, electro-technical products, furnishing products and transport applications for instruments such as the Cone Calorimeter, NBS Smoke Density Chamber, EN 50399 and SBI. PE.fiberoptics is a leading manufacturer of test equipment that measures optical and physical properties of optical fibres and cables. Optical fibres are the main medium for long distance transmission of telecommunication data and form the backbone of the world’s internet and telecommunications networks. Our products support the leading fibre and cable manufacturing companies around the world during production and in their quality assurance and R&D laboratories, and we export 95% of our products. UHV Design, founded in 1993, specialises in the design, manufacture and supply of high precision motion, manipulation, heating and cooling (cryogenic) of samples for use in the high and ultra-high vacuum environments for materials research. Globally, our products are essential in major big physics experiments including: • high energy particle accelerators such as CERN and SLAC; and • synchrotron light sources including PSI (Swiss), Argonne (USA) and the UK’s own facility, Diamond. They are also used routinely in laboratory-scale R&D instrumentation focused on new state-of-the-art materials in: semiconductors, photovoltaics, catalysis and bio-compatible materials. 2 30 Our businesses
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64 5 31 Our businesses Aitchee Engineering is a well established precision engineering company that can offer high end sheet metalwork, laser cutting and CNC machining. We use state of the art software to take customers’ drawings and turn them into manufactured goods in steel, aluminium, stainless steel, yellow metals or plastics. We can supply large batch-work, call off orders and R&D including prototypes; we can also offer manufacturing process assistance and value engineering East Sussex-based Quorum Technologies manufactures market-leading scientific instruments primarily used for electron microscopy (EM) sample preparation. Electron microscopy is a key research tool in almost every area of scientific endeavour, from the fight against coronavirus and other diseases such as cancer, through to food safety and the development of advanced microelectronics and new materials. Key products: • Q Series of vacuum coating systems; and • PP3010T cryo preparation systems for SEM and FIB/SEM. Sircal designs, manufactures and distributes rare gas purifiers typically for use in metal analysis utilising the Arc/Spark spectrometry technique. This technique provides qualitative and quantitative analysis of a metallic sample for determination of its purity. The products are sold worldwide to OEM customers (spectrometer manufacturers that use such purifiers in conjunction with their own instruments) or directly to end users such as metal manufacturers and dealers, and test houses.
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97 8 32 Our businesses Deben is a precision engineering company providing innovative solutions for SEM and μX-Ray CT in-situ tensile testing. Deben also manufactures SEM detectors and a range of SEM accessories including motor control and heating and cooling stages. Product groups: • in-situ tensile and compression systems; • accessories for electron beam applications; and • imaging and detectors for SEM and TEM. GDS designs, develops and manufactures equipment and software used for the computer-controlled testing of soils and rocks. This technology is used to evaluate the mechanical properties that are key in geotechnical and earthquake engineering design. Services include: • advanced systems for commercial soil and rock testing laboratories; and • bespoke systems for university research in the engineering properties of soil and rock. Scientifica is a multi-award winning, globally recognised manufacturer of advanced imaging, micro-positioning, and photomanipulation systems for neuroscience research. We develop cutting-edge equipment designed to enhance discoveries in neuronal electrophysiology, multiphoton imaging and optogenetics. Our world-class equipment enables researchers to conduct ground-breaking investigations of the nervous system and advance understanding of neurological diseases and processes. All equipment is manufactured in the United Kingdom and exported to more than 40 countries worldwide. We have offices in the UK and the USA, with product consultants based in Germany and China.
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1210 11 33 Our businesses Armfield offers unrivalled experience in the design and provision of teaching equipment aligned to global agricultural, chemical, civil, environmental, geology and geography, marine, mechanical, public health and food technology curriculums from entry-level vocational training through to bespoke research flumes. The industrial division designs and manufactures complex research and development systems and processing lines, focusing primarily on the food, beverage, dairy, edible oil and pharmaceutical industries for businesses of all sizes from start-up companies to the world’s leading brands. CoolLED designs and manufactures cutting-edge illumination systems for microscopy and other applications, pioneering the use of LEDs as controllable and environmentally friendly replacements for mercury-based lamps. Our expertise spans optical engineering and the life sciences, driving the development of our vast product range which includes: • the award-winning triple-wavelength pE-300 Series for everyday fluorescence microscopy; • 16-wavelength pE-4000 for high end research; • pE-340fura for Fura-2 ratiometric calcium imaging; • and pT-100 for transmitted light imaging techniques. We continue to push the boundaries with our OEM service and an exciting development plan. Dia-Stron is the leading manufacturer of automated measurement systems for single fibres and filaments, with our expertise globally recognised by the R&D community. Our instrumentation provides a full range of fibre measurement capabilities; dimensional/mechanical properties, interfacial evaluation and fatigue failure analysis. Additionally, Dia-Stron contract testing services are a key offering in building long-term relationships with our customers. We deliver measurement solutions to support: • the hair care industry with product development/advancing hair fibre science; and • the technical fibre market with the development of fibre composite materials.
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1513 14 34 Our businesses EWB Solutions specialises in the design and manufacture of edge-welded metal bellows where a high integrity hermetic seal is required in the presence of an applied movement. Supplied globally, EWB bellows are produced in a wide range of materials, meeting a variety of life and environmental constraints for applications within a diverse range of industries such as semiconductor processing, particle physics experimentation, material/surface analysis, oncology therapy and petrochemical processing. Oxford Cryosystems is a market-leading manufacturer of cryogenic devices. Spun out of Oxford University in the 1980s, the company designs and manufactures a range of nitrogen and helium-based low temperature devices which are exported to leading research institutes worldwide. Oxford Cryosystems products are used in fields as diverse as the characterisation of individual molecules to the mapping of deep space. Moorfield Nanotechnology design and manufactures R&D/pilot-scale laboratory systems to a global customer base in academic and industry. Core ranges are vacuum deposition products (MiniLab and nanoPVD) for production of high quality metal, inorganic and Organic films used throughout various high technology fields. Standalone and benchtop models are available, to match budgets and facilities. More recently, the company has expanded into applications in carbon nanomaterials with its range of nanoCVD and nanoETCH tools. Aside from deposition, the company also supplies portable HEPA-filtered cleanroom solutions through its clean environments division.
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16 17 35 Our businesses THT is a world leader in the design, manufacture and supply of specialised calorimeters for use in the chemical and battery industries. Application areas include process development, optimisation and safety of chemical reactions, and determining performance and safety characteristics of batteries. THT has over 25 years’ of calorimetry experience and offer a full range of adiabatic, reaction, and isothermal calorimeters. THTs products allow measurement of heats of reaction, derivation of kinetic parameters, assessment of maximum safe temperatures, and pressure generation. Korvus Technology sells and manufactures highly modular thin film deposition systems designed to allow custom-built systems to be assembled from standard parts. The systems are employed in academic and industry settings to advance research into novel thin film materials; most recently with heavy emphasis on Li battery research. The company is built on over 20 years of experience in the thin film technology market, designing, manufacturing and installing HV and UHV deposition systems. The company’s HEX platform offers an un- matched level of user control and customization, designed to incorporate the latest thin film technologies and performance into a bench top PVD system. 18 Geotek Ltd. (UK) specialises in high- resolution, non-destructive analysis of geological cores. Geotek has designed, built, and supplied its range of Multi-Sensor Core Logger (MSCL) systems for over 20 years, using a suite of geophysical and geochemical sensors primarily aimed at non-destructive core analysis. Geotek provides equipment sales and services to science and industry worldwide. The Geotek Multi-Sensor Core Logger (MSCL) systems enable a suite of geophysical measurements to be obtained rapidly, accurately and automatically on sediment or rock cores. Geotek design and manufacture a full range of cabinet-based digital 2D and 3D X-ray imaging systems for a variety of geoscience markets.
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2019 Our businesses Henniker designs and manufactures plasma surface treatment systems and processes for advanced cleaning, surface activation to improve adhesion, and functional nano-scale coatings. The company’s technology is relied upon both in critical industrial manufacturing settings and by leading academics involved in biomedical research, life sciences, energy storage, filtration, and many other areas of material science. Founded in 2018 by experts in optics and non-destructive testing, Bossa Nova Vision is specialized in the development of innovative polarization imaging system and cosmetic testing turn-key instruments. Strong expertise in polarization imaging and image processing have led Bossa Nova Vision to develop sensors for various applications and technologies, ranging from cosmetic testing for the hair care industry to detection of magnetic signature on hard drive. 21 Luciol is active in the field of fiber optic measurement and instrumentation, providing standard or customised innovative optical fiber instrumentation for different fields of application. Core expertise is photon-counting technology, which enables a new class of high resolution instrument, such as Optical Time Domain Reflectometers. These OTDRs have extremely high spatial resolution, which is impossible to achieve with conventional types of OTDRs. Luciol has sold hundreds of High Resolution OTDRs for various application and industries. 36
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2322 Our businesses Teer Coatings is a leading provider of advanced surface engineering solutions, specialising in the application of cutting-edge coatings to enhance the performance and durability of diverse materials. Utilising state-of-the-art physical vapor deposition (PVD) Magnetron Sputtering, the company excels in depositing thin films with tailored properties. These coatings exhibit exceptional characteristics like high hardness, wear resistance, and corrosion protection, contributing significantly to various industries, including aerospace, Motorsport, Sensors and industrial sectors. The company's expertise extends to custom solutions for specific applications, ensuring optimal functionality and extended lifespan of vital equipment Rockwash Geodata is a geological analysis laboratory and service company founded in 2010 with headquarters in Llandudno Junction, North Wales. The company specialises in rock cuttings and chippings digitalisation, initially providing the oil and gas industry with an automated rock sample washing process that would feed further analysis. Since then, the company has developed new products and services addressing present-day geological issues in the energy industry. 37