Science Group profit surges on gain from Richardo investment

Science Group PLC on Monday reported increased profit and revenue for its first half, and said it is ‘well positioned’ for the year as a whole.

The Cambridge, England-based science and technology consultancy said its pretax profit more than quadrupled to £32.2 million in the first half of 2025, from £7.6 million the year before. Basic earnings per share surged to 55.3 pence from 12.9p.

Science Group said its profit included a £24.0 million pretax gain on its investment in Ricardo PLC, which ‘materially augmented’ its ‘already strong balance sheet’. It previously announced the sale of its entire stake in Ricardo for £58.0 million on June 19, and said the net return on its investment was around £23.7 million.

The company’s cash balance totalled £82.0 million as of June 30, up from £38.8 million one year prior.

Revenue increased 6.5% to £57.2 million from £53.7 million. Science Group said revenue for the Professional Services Division was ‘constrained’, decreasing 9.1% to £33.2 million from £36.5 million.

However, revenue for Critical Maritime Systems & Support (CMS2) increased 52% to £16.6 million from £10.9 million, and the business ‘has good forward visibility for the remainder of the year’. Frontier, meanwhile, ‘performed ahead of expectations’ with revenue jumping 20% to £7.1 million from £5.9 million.

‘The Science Group model, combining Professional Services and Systems businesses, once again demonstrated its resilience in a period of volatility,’ the company said. ‘As a result, Science Group is well positioned for the full year.’

Noting that the Ricardo investment proceeds ‘significantly enhanced’ its profit and cash inflow, it added: ‘With the exceptionally strong financial position of Science Group, the board will continue to evaluate corporate opportunities should the potential risk-adjusted returns justify the capital deployment.’

Shares in Science Group rose 2.6% to 564.00 pence each in London on Monday.

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