Judges Scientific PLC (AIM:JDG) shares slumped in Thursday morning’s trade, after a downbeat trading update ahead of its interim results due in September.
The company, which makes scientific instruments, pointed to challenging market conditions and tough prior-year comparisons, as it reported a 4% decline in organic order intake compared to last year.
Organic revenue was down 3%, it added.
It has now downgraded its guidance, with earnings per share predicted to be below market consensus (of 384.6p) by between 5% and 10%.
“The board expects the second half to show progress with the realisation of some delayed projects and Geotek will benefit from the increased activity of its digitalisation business,” the company said in a statement.
It added: “The next Geotek contract is in negotiation, and specifies an expedition starting at the very end of 2024, implying no recognisable revenue in the current financial year.”
“Despite the expectation of an improved second half, the board no longer expects the group's performance to recover sufficiently to enable us to deliver a year-end performance in line with current market expectations.”
In London, Judges shares were down 18.85% trading at 9,170p.