21 November 2019
Judges Scientific plc
("Judges Scientific", "the Company", or "the Group")
Special dividend
The Board of Judges Scientific today announces that in order to prioritise the interests of its shareholders it has decided to pay a special dividend of £2.00 per ordinary share, totalling £12.4 million.
The Board has assessed the Group's cash resources, its robust cash generation and the Group's ability to borrow for acquisitions, which result from a sustained period of strong performance. The special dividend will absorb a modest proportion of the resources available to conduct acquisitions and the Board is therefore confident that this special dividend will not interfere with the execution of Judges' unchanged buy-and-build strategy.
Payment of the special dividend will be on Tuesday 10 December 2019 to shareholders on the register on Friday 29 November 2019. The shares will go ex-dividend on Thursday 28 November 2019. The special dividend will be funded from existing cash balances.
Alex Hambro, Chairman of Judges Scientific, commented:
"The payment of this special dividend is a reflection of our constant focus on shareholders' interests. Following this payment, the Group will have returned to shareholders four and a half times the IPO price."
For further information please contact:
Judges Scientific |
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David Cicurel, CEO Brad Ormsby, Group FD |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3829 6970 |
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Shore Capital (Nominated Adviser & Broker) |
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Stephane Auton Edward Mansfield |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7408 4090 |
Liberum (Joint Broker) |
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Bidhi Bhoma
Euan Brown |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3100 2222 |
Media enquiries: Alma PR (Financial Public Relations) |
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Rebecca Sanders-Hewett Sam Modlin |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 3405 0205 [email protected] |
Notes to editors:
Judges Scientific plc (AIM: JDG), is a group involved in the buy and build of scientific instrument businesses. The Group currently consists of 16 businesses acquired since it was re-admitted to AIM in 2005.
The acquired companies are primarily UK-based with products sold worldwide to a diverse range of markets including: higher education institutions, the scientific communities, manufacturers and regulatory authorities. The UK is a recognised centre of excellence for scientific instruments. The Group companies hold five Queen's Awards for innovation and export.
The Group's companies predominantly operate in global niche markets, with long term growth fundamentals and resilient margins.
Judges Scientific maintains a policy of selectively acquiring businesses that generate sustainable profits and cash. Shareholder returns are created through the repayment of debt, organic growth and dividends.
For further information, please visit www.judges.uk.com
