Interim Results

Chief Executive's Statement

Oxford Metrics has made clear strategic progress in the first half, reporting in line with management expectations. The performance has been driven across both our divisions with an ongoing focus on cost and efficiency. Continued focus has been put into setting the Group up for growth as we continue to actively allocate resources to high-impact areas. 

The Group has made good strategic progress in the half with the management team focussed on executing on the key priorities set out at our full year results. Chiefly, these priorities included getting markerless into our customers' hands and establishing our new growth area, smart manufacturing, to position us for future growth. I'm pleased to report clear operational progress on both fronts.

In March, our highly anticipated next generation Vicon Markerless went live and launched at the Game Developer Conference in San Francisco - no suits, no markers needed, enabling faster creative visualisation of motion capture in real time. We worked very closely in the extensive beta testing phases with some of the biggest names in Visual Effects including Industrial Light & Magic, Gearbox Entertainment, Dreamscape Immersive, Dimension|DNEG360 and Framestore, and feedback so far has been positive.

With commercialisation now underway we are well placed to build a quality software and services revenue stream on top of our marker-based business and as anticipated, expect to realise modest markerless revenues in FY25. As planned, initial rollout is to the Entertainment market, enabling Visual Effects teams to quickly bring creative ideas to life and transition to full optical motion capture if required. As Vicon leads the way to set this new industry standard, our new markerless system is already powering Dreamscape Immersive's latest VR experience in Geneva. Post period end, our teams have conducted a number of demonstrations globally to over 250 interested parties and our markerless opportunity pipeline is now building.

In October, we strengthened our smart manufacturing offering with the acquisition of Sempre. Sempre are measurement specialists and an established sales and services organisation, helping well-known, blue-chip manufacturers solve metrology challenges, improve quality and efficiencies across multiple industries including aerospace, automotive, medical and precision engineering.

As we execute upon our smart manufacturing opportunity, we welcomed a new managing director, Dr Simon Gunter to lead and drive forward important initiatives to build the Group's position in this important market and growth area.

Post period end, we acquired Amber Optix, bringing 27 years' experience developing non-contact machine vison inspection systems for contact lens manufacturers to automatically detect defects and ensure 'right first time' products. Amber Optix has been incorporated into Industrial Vision Systems ("IVS"), strengthening both IVS' and Sempre's product portfolios as we accelerate commercial and R&D efforts.

As we move forward, the Group has clear ambitions for the division, with an immediate focus on bringing together the commercial capabilities of Sempre and the vision capabilities of IVS, to build an engine for growth and applying this across co-ordinated manufacturing and quality environments.

Following these acquisitions and the appointment of our new smart manufacturing managing director, we are currently formulating the Group's new three-year strategy which is expected to be announced at our full year results later this year.

Operational and financial performance

	Revenue			Adjusted EBIT
	H1 FY25	H1 FY24	FY24	H1 FY25	H1 FY24	FY24
Motion capture	£14.8m	£21.7m	£38.6m	£0.6m	£4.4m	£5.1m
Smart manufacturing	£5.3m	£1.8m	£2.9m	£0.7m	£0.5m	£0.3m
PLC - unallocated				(£1.7m)	(£1.9m)	(£3.7m)
Total Continued Operations	£20.1m	£23.5m	£41.5m	(£0.4m)	£3.0m	£1.7m

 

The Group delivered revenues of £20.1m (H1 FY24: £23.5m) in line with management's expectations. Revenue includes £3.6m generated from Sempre, which we acquired to strengthen our smart manufacturing division. The Group reports Adjusted EBIT* (£0.4m) (H1 FY24 EBIT: £3.0m).

H1 FY24 is a particularly strong comparative reflecting the opening order book of FY24 and final stage delivery of our largest order in company history. This trend in H1 FY24 was not expected to be repeated in FY25 once customer buying returned to normal in H2 FY24.

* Adjusted (Loss)/Earnings before Interest and Tax, adjusted for share-based payments, amortisation of intangibles arising on acquisition and exceptional costs.

 

 

 

Vertical performance

The Group operates across four markets, life sciences, entertainment, engineering and smart manufacturing, giving a strong income stream and a diverse range of applications for our products. Contracting periods and buying cycles can therefore vary considerably and comparison on a six-month basis can significantly change from period to period. The Group continues to see strong repeat business above 80% within all markets in our motion capture division.

Motion capture

Motion capture revenues were down 32% in the period against an exceptionally strong H1 FY24 comparator and a normalisation of buying patterns in H2 FY24. Revenue of £14.8m (H1 FY24 £21.8m), and gross margins remain strong. The adjusted EBIT of the division after Group allocation of costs is £0.6m (H1 FY24: £4.4m).

While markerless has been a major focus as our teams worked towards its successful launch, Vicon's marker-based business also saw good progress, securing both new contracts and customer upgrades across all main markets and geographies:

●	A leading group of rehabilitation hospitals across Brazil invested in its first Vicon Valkyrie system to carry out clinical gait analysis, enabling its orthopaedic teams to make informed decisions and recommend clinical, surgical and rehabilitative treatments.
●	Major Entertainment producers across the USA, Japan and Korea invested in large Valkyrie systems to capture ultra realistic movement and bring their characters to life.
●	Sandbox VR continued its rollout, now with 55 facilities across the globe and more due to be opened.

 

Life Sciences

Life Sciences reported revenues of £5.6m (H1 FY24 £8.1m), a decline of 31% on the prior year, marginally below management expectations and against a strong comparator. H1 2024 saw higher than normal sales due to the fulfilment of sales in the order book which had built up to record levels in FY23 as a result of the well-documented supply chain challenges following the pandemic.

Entertainment

Entertainment reported revenues of £7.2m (H1 FY24 £8.9m), a decline of 19% on the prior year. This was above management expectations, with Entertainment showing improved activity across most of the territories:

●	India saw good growth in the half. A leading Indian film studio and a long-standing visual effects customer both invested in large Valkyrie systems for their facilities.
●	A new customer in South Korea, purchased a 60-camera Valkyrie system for their new virtual content studio which enables V-Tubers to capture their movements to the highest precision, enabling them to live broadcast more realistic and lifelike digital avatars.

 

Engineering

Engineering, our smallest vertical, reported revenues of £2.0m (H1 FY24 £4.9m), representing a decline of 59% on prior year. This was in line with management expectations for the half due to the exceptionally high comparator in H1 2024, which saw unusually high revenues in Engineering due to final stages of delivery of the largest standalone order in company history.

In the half, contracts were secured in the automotive, aerospace, metrology and research sectors, including a top-ranking UK university and long-standing customer investing in a new Vicon system for research into autonomous vehicles.

Smart manufacturing

Smart manufacturing reported revenues of £5.3m (H1 FY24 £1.8m), an increase of 194%, inclusive of revenue contributions of £3.6m from Sempre, acquired in the period. Organic growth in the period is down by 3% due to some contract delivery delays impacting revenue recognition. Gross margins are resilient although Sempre has a lower gross margin percentage than IVS due to the different business model. The adjusted EBIT of the division after Group allocation of costs is £0.7m (H1 FY24: £0.5m).

During the half, we welcomed Dr Simon Gunter as managing director to lead this division. Simon is an experienced c-level leader with an extensive track record of growing early-stage technology businesses and successfully implementing change through business transformation, strategy and direction, M&A, and launching innovative products.

Multiple new contracts were secured across various markets including aerospace, medical, pharmaceutical, and automotive, as demand continues for automated vision inspection, quality control and metrology solutions.

●	A UK-based dry inhaler manufacturer invested in an IVS system to automatically inspect blister strips containing pre-set doses of medicine for asthma sufferers. The IVS system inspects each individual blister, checking the height, width and form, ensuring the correct dosage of medicine is included and they are compliant with strict medical regulations.
●	Three major contracts secured with leading Formula 1 teams, supplying measurement systems to help teams optimise performance in races to gain competitive advantage.
●	A long-standing leading medical device customer invested in a multi-sensing vision solution for the precision inspection of safety-critical components.

 

Profitability

Gross profit decreased by 16% to £13.2m (H1 FY24 £15.7m), with gross margin at 65.5% (H1 FY24: 66.8%) down 130 bps. The decline is mainly due to the mix in sales and the higher volume of sales going through our smart manufacturing division, which is typically lower margin than the motion capture business.

As expected, sales, support and marketing costs increased to £5.4m (H1 FY24: £4.5m) a 21% increase representing the ongoing operational costs from the Sempre acquisition.

Research and development costs were £2.5m (H1 FY24: £2.7m), with investment still being incurred in markerless development and new products for H2 2025.

Administration costs also increased to £6.5m (H1 FY24: £5.9m) an 11% increase in the main attributable to the Sempre acquisition, partially offset by savings seen year-on-year in the motion capture division.

Adjusted profit before tax £0.3m (H1 FY24: £4.0m) reflecting the lower revenue as detailed above.

Adjustments made to the interim financial results before tax were £1.0m (H1 FY24: £0.4m) and are for share-based payments, amortisation of intangibles arising on acquisition and professional fees in relations to acquisitions. See note 4 for further detail.

The finance income for the period was £0.7m (H1 FY24: £1.1m). The income is derived from the Group's large cash balances held on interest bearing deposit accounts. Over the period the value held, and the interest rates have decreased resulting in the lower finance income. Cash has been utilised to fund the acquisition of Sempre and Amber Optix, pay dividend and the share buyback.

EBIT

Adjusted EBIT which provides a more consistent comparison of trading between the financial periods of the Group and removes any non-operating costs, decreased in the period by 113% to a loss of £0.4m (H1 FY24: profit £3.0m). Reflecting the lower revenue in the period and higher operational costs as detailed above.

The Group remains focused on enhancing profitability by optimising operational overheads and driving efficiencies across all departments and divisions. We are actively reducing costs and implementing automation software to streamline processes, improve productivity, and support sustainable growth.

Tax

The Group tax charge is £0.1m (H1 FY2024: £0.6m). The tax charge in the period is due to movements in deferred tax including, but not exclusively, capital allowances in excess of depreciation and amortisation. The Group's consolidated effective tax rate for H1 2025 was 13.0% (H1 2024: 29.5%).

Cash and cash generation

Following recent acquisitions and the share buyback programme, the Group cash position remains strong at £39.9m (H1 FY24: £54.8m) as at 31 March 2025.

The inventory position at the end of the reporting period was £8.1m (H1 FY24: £9.0m). Following the well documented supply chain challenges of previous years, Vicon has continued to drive inventory down in line with forecasts and has made improvements to procurement processes working to internal agreed targets and KPIs.

Cash used in investing and financing activities included continued investment in research and development of £1.8m (H1 FY24: £1.4m), interest received £0.6m (H1 FY24: £1.1m), the deployment of £4.3m (net of cash acquired) on the acquisition of Sempre and other capital items £0.2m.

The final cash dividend of £4.2m (H1 FY24: £3.6m), continuing the Group's progressive dividend policy and cash utilised for shares repurchased of £3.6m at period end. At the current rate we expect the £6m of cash allocated for the share repurchase to be fully utilised during August to September 2025.

Cash generated by operations during the first half was £2.8m compared with £2.2m in the first half of last year, reflecting the lower profitability of the period being offset with stronger control on working capital.

Board changes

In October, we welcomed Dr Ian Wilcock as Non-Executive Director. Ian is Chair of the Remuneration Committee and a member of the Audit Committee. Ian brings over 30 years' experience, has a proven track record of growing businesses organically and through acquisition and held senior positions at smart sensor businesses that delivered ambitious growth plans.

Post period end, we welcomed Dr Margaret Amos as a Non-Executive Director. Margaret brings over 27 years' executive experience, the majority of which were at Rolls Royce, where she held senior leadership positions including Finance Director. Margaret brings strong expertise in M&A, international growth, turnarounds and transformation and has held senior independent, audit, remuneration and ESG Chair positions.

Paul Taylor will be retiring from the Board on 30^th June 2025 and Margaret will, from July 1st take over as Chair of the Audit Committee and become a member of the Remuneration Committee.

Roger Parry has informed the Board of his intention to not stand for re-election as Chair at the next AGM. Recruitment for a replacement Chair has commenced.

Long-standing Executive Director and Company Secretary, Cathy Robertson, retired after 24 years on the Board and almost 40 years of service. Cathy has made an enormous contribution to the company over that time, including floating the business on AIM, setting up our US offices and, acquiring and selling businesses for the Group. On behalf of the Board, colleagues and our shareholders, we wish Cathy the very best in retirement.

Co-secretary

Post period end, Philip Abrahams was appointed as Company Secretary for the Group. Philip brings a tremendous amount of experience including strong legal expertise, governance leadership, supporting M&A transactions, regulatory compliance, and sustainability.

Capital allocation

Share buyback programme

In October 2024 we were pleased to announce a return of up to £6m of cash to shareholders through the means of an on-market share buyback programme. The buyback programme is tracking to expected timelines and as 17 June 2025 had utilised £5.0m of cash and purchased 8.8m of shares at an average share price of £0.55 per share.

As of 17 June 2025 the total number of voting rights in ordinary shares of 0.25 pence per share of Oxford Metrics was 122,592,334.

The Group is pleased to report, post period end, the Board approved an additional £4m extension of the share buyback programme.

 

M&A

Oxford Metrics continues to have a disciplined and consistent approach to M&A. We are actively pursuing M&A opportunities to drive more applications into the smart manufacturing space, building the Group's position in this important growth vector. We continue to only pursue opportunities that align with our strict criteria and mantra; to find the right acquisitions, at the right price, for the right reasons.

On 10 October 2024 the Group acquired 100% of the share capital of The Sempre Group Holdings Limited on for a total consideration of up to £5.5m. Sempre are measurement specialists and an established sales and services organisation, helping manufacturers improve quality and efficiencies across multiple industries including aerospace, automotive, medical and precision engineering.

Post period end, on 4 April 2025, the Group acquired 100% of the share capital of Amber Optix for a total consideration of up to £0.8m, including an earnout contingent consideration of up to £0.3m dependent upon certain performance targets being met. Amber Optix has a profitable track record and, in the year ended 31 March 2024, reported unaudited revenues of £0.6m.

Our ongoing M&A programme continues with focus on smart manufacturing opportunities to augment and accelerate this division's growth.

R&D

R&D investment and innovation of new products remains key to the success of the business. Continued investment has seen development costs capitalised in the period of £1.8m, £0.8m of which was for our new markerless motion capture. Vicon Markerless was launched in March 2025 and initially aimed at our Entertainment market. The majority of other spend is on other new products and product improvements due for release in H2 2025.

Trading and Outlook

Overall, trading in the second half has begun as expected, in line with previous years and our usual seasonal trading patterns, albeit we remain mindful of external macro uncertainty.

Our latest innovation, Vicon Markerless, launched in March 2025 is commercially available. Customer demonstrations are now taking place across the globe, to deliver this latest technology into more of our customers' hands.

As a diversified business, while we are seeing improving activity and opportunities for Vicon in South America, Asia Pacific and Europe in our Entertainment and Life Science markets, we are seeing macroeconomic factors affecting certain areas of the business. In the United States we continue to monitor evolving developments relating to recent policy change. The US National Institutes of Health, the world's largest funder of biomedical research, is facing significant changes and a subsequent reduction in grants and funding. The National Science Foundation was also significantly affected. Our institutional and academic customers are navigating this changing landscape, and this is now being seen in our US operation with several pipeline opportunities being cancelled or being delayed beyond the current financial year.

Independent of these policy changes, the Group continues to monitor the US tariff situation and does not anticipate the current US tariff policy will have a material impact. To help mitigate the current macroeconomic climate we continue to manage our cost base prudently.

In smart manufacturing we have good H2 visibility, with a building orderbook and pipeline which continues beyond the current financial year. With a new managing director in place, we are focused on bringing together our offering to collaborate, upsell and develop cross sell opportunities as we buildout our presence in this important growth area and scale it moving forward.

The long-term fundamental drivers of our business remain intact with the right products and the right teams well-placed to accelerate and execute. Looking ahead, we enter the second half with a typical pipeline of motion capture opportunities across the majority of our geographies. Although we remain mindful of external macro uncertainty and the natural H2 weighting of the business, the Board anticipates the full year Adjusted EBIT to be in-line with the Board's expectations based on present market conditions and the conversion and execution of pipeline opportunities at their historical rate.

 

 

 

 

 

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT

 

		Six months ended 31 March 2025	Six months ended  31 March 2024	Year ended  30 September 2024
		(unaudited)	Restated (unaudited)	(audited)
	Note	£'000	£'000	£'000
Revenue	2	20,115	23,523	41,459
Cost of sales		(6,943)	(7,806)	(13,868)
Gross profit		13,172	15,717	27,591
Sales, support and marketing costs		(5,425)	(4,531)	(8,795)
Research and development		(2,534)	(2,676)	(5,152)
Administrative expenses		(6,548)	(5,908)	(12,920)
Operating (loss)/profit		(1,335)	2,602	724
Finance income		818	1,199	2,334
Finance expense		(149)	(132)	(276)
(Loss)/profit before taxation		(666)	3,669	2,782
Taxation		(148)	(598)	149
(Loss)/profit from continuing operations		(814)	3,071	2,931
Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax		(472)	(1,659)	(2,173)
(Loss)/profit for the period attributable to owners of the parent during the period		(1,286)	1,412	758
(Loss)/earnings per share for profit on continuing operations attributable to owners of the parent during the year
Basic (loss)/earnings per share (pence)	6	(0.63)p	2.34p	2.24p
Diluted (loss)/earnings per share (pence)	6	(0.63)p	2.31p	2.22p