Oxford Nanopore Shares Plunge After Cutting Underlying Growth Forecast

Oxford Nanopore Technologies shares plunged to their lowest level since April 2025 after the DNA-sequencing firm reported first-half revenue growth that fell short of expectations and trimmed its underlying outlook for the full year. The London-listed company's stock fell by more than 14% in Monday trading following the update.

Trading Update Disappoints Investors

Oxford Nanopore announced that revenue for the six months ending June 30 was approximately £116.5 million, an increase of 12% at constant currency. However, the company stated that trading during the period was "below management expectations."

The shortfall was primarily attributed to significant headwinds in key international markets. The company cited specific regional challenges impacting its performance:

• China: Revenue declined by approximately 16% amid changes to its commercial operations.
• Middle East: Revenue fell by approximately 14%, which the company linked to regional disruption.
• Americas: Growth of approximately 12% was impacted by the timing of customer orders.

In contrast, the company saw stronger performance in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and India, where revenue grew by approximately 20%, driven by momentum in its clinical and biopharma segments.

Revised Full-Year Outlook

Ad

While Oxford Nanopore maintained its headline full-year revenue growth guidance of 21% to 25% at constant currency, it specified this now includes anticipated non-recurring collaboration and licensing deals in the second half. For investors, the key change was the underlying growth forecast.

Excluding these one-off opportunities, the company narrowed its underlying constant-currency growth forecast to a range of 16% to 25%. This revision reflects the continued weakness in China, disruption in the Middle East, and the impact of order timing from the first half.

The company did reiterate its full-year gross margin guidance of approximately 62% and confirmed it remains on track to achieve adjusted EBITDA breakeven during the first half of 2027.

Company Commentary

Chief Executive Francis Van Parys acknowledged the first-half performance, stating, "While first half revenue growth was below our expectations, we have continued to make good operational progress in the period." He highlighted "further improvements in gross margin and disciplined cost control" as key achievements supporting the company's path to profitability.

Oxford Nanopore reported a cash and cash equivalents position of approximately £234 million as of the end of the period. The company plans to provide a more detailed update during its interim results in August.