Half-year Results

Norman Broadbent (AIM: NBB), a leading Executive Search and Interim Management firm, with an ambitious growth plan to scale the business through disciplined investment in fee-earning capacity, is pleased to announce its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2026 ("H1 2026" or the "Period").

Strong second quarter performance and current work in progress underpins strategic momentum

Highlights for the Period

• Net fee income ("NFI") for H1 2026 was £5.3m, with Q2 NFI of £3.1m highlighting the success in rebuilding the pipeline following the strong finish to 2025
• NFI of £5.3m compares against a prior year comparator of £6.0m, which was a record first half performance for the Group
• Underlying EBITDA[1] loss of £0.2m (H1 2025: £0.8m profit), reflects the investment in headcount in 2026
• Net debt[²] of £0.8m (30 June 2025: net cash[²] of £0.2m) reflects lower cash generation from the slower January and the timing of FY25 annual bonus payments made during H1 2026
• Net increase of nine sales and related staff in the Period, in-line with the strategy to invest in fee-related headcount

[1] Excludes share based payment charges and exceptional costs

[2] Excludes lease liabilities

Kevin Davidson, CEO of Norman Broadbent, said: "We are pleased to be reporting our interim results with NFI of over £3m in the second quarter re-establishing the quarterly run-rate we delivered through our record performance in 2025. We are making good progress in delivering on our strategy to scale the business and continue to invest in headcount expansion in line with our plans. We are not immune to the prevailing market environment, which remains tough, but our improving NFI momentum and current robust pipeline give us confidence in a strong NFI performance in the second half of the year."

Copies of this announcement are available on the Company's website, at www.normanbroadbent.com

Investor Presentation

CEO Kevin Davidson and CFO Mehr Malik will host a virtual presentation and Q&A session via Investor Meet Company on 16 September 2026 at 12:00pm BST. The presentation is open to all existing and potential shareholders. To register to attend, please use the following link: https://www.investormeetcompany.com/norman-broadbent-plc/register-investor

CEO Statement

Overview of first half performance

We are very pleased with the performance of the Group in the first half. To give some context to the first half performance, the Group delivered a record financial performance in 2025 with NFI of £12.3 million and underlying EBITDA of £1.3 million. This included a strong Q4 where the Group delivered NFI of £3.3 million, a record quarterly performance in over a decade, with a material element of NFI (notably placements) that we anticipated booking in January 2026 actually secured in December 2025. The monthly run-rate post-January has returned to the levels we saw in 2025, resulting in NFI for the Period of £5.3 million, showing sequential growth from first quarter NFI of £2.2m to second quarter NFI of £3.1m. This reflects well on the team's focus and disciplined execution to rebuild the pipeline after the record 2025. It sets us up for another strong NFI performance in 2026.

Underlying EBITDA loss for the Period of £0.2m reflects the weaker January NFI and our investment in headcount in early 2026. During the Period our headcount increased to 71 from 62 at the end of December 2025, reflecting this planned investment. This includes the five staff joining us through the Society acquisition.

The recruitment and development of fee-earners is the critical driver of future growth of the business. EBITDA is naturally suppressed initially as new joiners typically take 12-18 months to ramp up to the fee generating levels we would expect. We will continue to make targeted hires to support our strategic growth objectives and, despite this investment, we expect to deliver an improvement in Underlying EBITDA in the second half of the year based on current and anticipated trading.

Net debt of £0.8 million primarily reflects the lower cash generation from the slower start to the year in January and the timing of annual bonus payments made during H1 2026. These bonus payments related to the strong performance in FY2025. The business used cash of £2.1 million to fund its operations in the first half. The net debt position is expected to improve in the second half of the year as the business generates cash through trading and the cash position benefits from fewer bonus-related outflows in the remainder of the year.

The efforts of the team in re-establishing positive commercial momentum after the slower January is particularly notable in a market which remains tough. Continued geopolitical uncertainty, and political change in the UK, has impacted business confidence with clients taking longer to make hiring decisions. The team has doubled-down on their commitment to supporting our clients through this period of uncertainty and the leadership team and Board are very thankful and appreciative of their commitment and tenacity in delivering this good performance.

Strategic framework - a value creation roadmap centred on strengthening and deepening our platform capability

With our last results announcement in March 2026, we explained that FY25 marked an important milestone for Norman Broadbent, completing the set of objectives established when I joined the business in late 2021. Over the four-year period we delivered a fully organic turnaround and rebuild: NFI more than doubled from £5.9 million to £12.3 million, underlying EBITDA rebuilt to £1.3 million, and the Group moved from net debt of £0.7 million at the end of 2021 to net cash of £1.5 million at 31 December 2025. Alongside the financial improvement, we have transformed and modernised the operating platform and reset the culture, creating a stronger foundation for sustainable growth.

With the turnaround complete, the Board was refreshed with two new independent non-executive director appointments. Dr. Annette Nabavi joined the Board on 1 May 2026 and Stephen Wardell joined on 21 May 2026 replacing Devyani Vaishampayan and Jon Kempster who stepped down from the Board in March and May 2026 respectively. The two appointments complete the refresh of the Board and means the Board is in place to lead Norman Broadbent through the next stage of growth.

With the support of the Board, the management team has evolved an ambitious medium-term growth strategy that builds on the strong foundations that have been established. The Group's strategy is to continue to grow our executive search business whilst also further developing our complementary portfolio of services, to strengthen client relationships, broaden client engagement and diversify revenue streams over time.

Our growth strategy is based on two complementary pillars. The first focuses on headcount growth through self-funded recruitment. This plan is complemented by our "strategic investment" opportunity, which is based on achieving a step-change in scale, profitability and cash generation through a logical broadening of our business. This includes acquisitions alongside other options to accelerate headcount growth to deliver a meaningful change in scale and value.

We continue to monitor acquisition opportunities, to build on the acquisition of Society earlier this year. The Board continues to adopt a disciplined approach to assessing acquisition opportunities to ensure value for shareholders. We walked away from an acquisition earlier this year which would have been potentially transformational for the Group as we believed the risk-reward for shareholders was not sufficiently attractive. Alongside acquisitions, we are also reviewing a number of business cases for strategic growth investment targeting a potentially faster headcount recruitment programme across both the UK and international markets. In parallel, we are assessing targeted investment to augment our technology platform to enhance our research and project delivery efficiency, unlock productivity gains and capitalise on the competitive opportunities presented by AI. In short, we have a pragmatic growth strategy that looks to utilise multiple levers to grow the business both through incremental organic investment and through strategic investment.

Strategic execution

The progress delivered over the past four years demonstrates our ability to strengthen the business while growing headcount, revenues and profitability, even in challenging market conditions. On the back of the business improvements we have delivered, we entered 2026 with a scalable and financially resilient platform that supports our ambitious growth plan.

Earlier this year, with our FY2025 results announced in March, we set out our priorities for FY26:

• to continue to drive growth in executive search, which remains the core engine of the Group, while protecting quality and productivity;
• to build our international footprint; and
• to broaden our leadership consulting and advisory proposition in a measured way.

In February 2026, we announced the acquisition of Society Limited, a specialist UK based executive search firm. Society is a highly complementary business which strengthens our capability in the third sector, including not-for-profit, charities, education and public sector organisations. Five full-time staff joined Norman Broadbent, including two established fee-earners. Society is a great fit for Norman Broadbent and an excellent example of how we can leverage our established brand to recruit talent and strengthen our offering. The rationale for the Society acquisition included leveraging their track record and established presence with the UK public sector to accelerate our growth in this market. We were therefore delighted to work closely with our Society colleagues to secure Norman Broadbent's appointment to the Government Commercial Agency's Executive & Non-Executive Search 3 Framework (RM6394). The framework provides central government and the wider UK public sector with a compliant route to access executive and non-executive recruitment services, with our appointment covering executive roles from Grade 6 through to the most senior levels of the Civil Service (and equivalents), as well as Non-Executive and Public Appointments. The framework commenced in August 2026 for an initial three-year term, with the option to extend for a further year. The appointment significantly broadens the Group's addressable opportunity across the public sector and builds on the complementary expertise added through the acquisition of Society earlier in the year.

Geographic expansion is also central to our plans, with the near-term focus aligned with growing our executive search capability in targeted markets. Reflecting the growth in our international activity, in 2025 we made the strategic decision to invest in establishing a local presence in the Middle East and the US and made our first Partner hires in the UAE and the US that year. We have supplemented this investment with further hires in 2026, two of which are in the Middle East and one in Houston, USA. These hires represent an important step in establishing a more durable presence in these regions and we remain focused on further developing our footprint in these priority markets. Our ability to deliver complex searches internationally highlights the global capability of our research and delivery function and the growing recognition of the brand in key overseas markets. The US also represents over 50% of the global executive search market and, with established client relationships and the heritage of our team across this market, it has the potential to play a meaningful role in our ambitious expansion plans.

In addition to these appointments, we have strengthened our Consumer Markets team with a senior hire and expanded our Industrial and Investor practices with further hires. We have also introduced the Associate Director level, creating an additional opportunity for career progression within the business. This is a new programme aimed at developing our own fee-earning talent by supporting selected research staff to transition to fee earning staff. Four staff are currently on the programme and we are excited about the opportunity this programme offers to further develop our own talent.

In terms of service line expansion, we are executing on our plans to develop our Leadership Consulting and Advisory practice in 2026 and beyond. Amisha Shelat joined the Group in March 2026 to head our Leadership Advisory practice. Amisha brings extensive experience in working with clients on implementing talent and leadership strategies. The team are establishing a more structured approach across a number of the advisory and consultancy services we offer such as onboarding coaching, leadership assessment and development programmes and board effectiveness reviews whilst also leveraging these services across our fee-earning community.

Current Trading & Outlook

We are making good progress in delivering on the objectives we set for 2026 and expect further headcount growth in the second half of the year. The improving NFI momentum year to date and increased level of work in progress underpin the Board's confidence in delivering a strong performance in the second half of the year. This is despite the prevailing market environment which remains tough and continues to have some impact on the speed of hiring processes. Our robust levels of retainer income support a strong pipeline of contracted work in progress even where some processes through to placement have become more elongated.

Kevin Davidson

Chief Executive

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

For the six months ended 30 June 2026

* See note 3 for details of restated earnings per share.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

As at 30 June 2026

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

ACCOUNTING POLICIES

1.1 Basis of preparation

The financial information set out in these interim financial statements does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in Section 435 of the Companies Act 2006. The Group's statutory financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025, prepared under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The auditor's report on those statements was unqualified.

The interim financial information for the six months ended 30 June 2026, has been prepared in accordance with the AIM Rules for Companies. The Group has not elected to apply IAS 34 'Interim Financial Reporting'. The principal accounting policies used in preparing the interim results are those the Group expects to apply in its financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2026 and are unchanged from those disclosed in the Group's Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2025. The interim financial statements have not been audited.

1.2 Basis of consolidation and business combinations

Group financial statements consolidate those of the Company and of the following subsidiary undertakings:

* Society APAC Ltd was dissolved on 24 June 2026.

SEGMENTAL ANALYSIS

Group revenues are primarily driven from UK operations. However, when revenue is derived from overseas business, the results are presented to the Board by geographic region to identify potential areas for growth or those posing potential risks to the Group.

Revenue by class of business:

Revenue £'000

• PROFIT / (LOSs) PER ORDINARY SHARE
• Basic profit / (loss) per share:

This is calculated by dividing the profit / (loss) attributable to equity holders of the Company by the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period:

Diluted profit / (loss) per share:

This is calculated by adjusting the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding to assume conversion of all potentially dilutive issues of ordinary shares. The Company has issued share options which are potentially dilutive. A calculation is done to determine the number of shares that could have been acquired at fair value (determined as the average annual price of the Company's shares) based on the monetary value of the subscription rights attached to the outstanding options. The number of shares calculated as above is compared with the number of shares that would have been issued assuming the exercise of the share options.

Adjusted profit / (loss) per share

Adjusted profit / (loss) per share has also been calculated in addition to the basic and diluted loss per share and is based on losses adjusted to eliminate charges for share based payments. It has been calculated to allow shareholders to gain a clearer understanding of the trading performance of the Group.

*The 2025 comparatives have been restated to correct the treatment of LTIP time-based vesting conditions in the weighted-average share calculation.

BORROWINGS

Invoice discounting facility

The Group operates an invoice discounting facility with Metro Bank. All Group invoices are raised through Norman Broadbent Executive Search Limited and as such Metrobank (SME Invoice Finance Limited) holds an all asset debenture for Norman Broadbent plc and Norman Broadbent Executive Search Limited. At as 30 June 2026, the outstanding balance on the facility was £0.9m. Interest is charged on any drawn down funds at a rate of 2.25% above the bank base rate.

ACQUISITION OF SOCIETY LIMITED

On 25 February the Group completed the acquisition of Society Limited, a specialist UK based executive search firm. The Group's headcount grew by 5 including two established fee earners.

The Group acquired 100% of the issued share capital of Society Limited for a consideration of £33,001 which was funded through the issue of 14,194 new Ordinary Shares in the Company. The fair value exercise to measure goodwill arising remains provisional at 30 June 2026 and may be revised by the year end.

SHARE CAPITAL

6.1 Issue of Ordinary Shares

On 3 March 2026 14,194 new Ordinary Shares of 5 pence each were issued in connection with the acquisition of Society Limited as described in Note 5. Legal costs of £10k were incurred in the share issue and deducted from equity. Following the allocation a total of 1,925,688 Ordinary Shares were in issue.

6.2 Capital Reorganisation

On 28 April 2026 the High Court granted its approval to a special resolution approved at the Company's General Meeting held on 26 March 2026 to cancel all the Company's existing Deferred Shares and to cancel in full the Company's Share Premium Account. The balances from the Share Capital and Share Premium accounts were credited to a reserve used to cancel the deficit on the Company's accumulated profit and loss account.

DIRECTOR CHANGES

Dr Annette Nabavi was appointed a director on 1 May 2026 and chairs the Remuneration Committee.

Stephen Wardell was appointed a director on 21 May 2026 and chairs the Audit Committee.

Jonathan Kempster resigned as a director on 20 May 2026.

Devyani Vaishampayan resigned as a director on 5 March 2026.