Oxford Metrics is an Oxford-based AIM company founded in 1984. It makes Vicon motion-capture systems and machine-vision inspection tools for factories. Revenue hit a record £44m in FY23, then buyers slowed, and the company bought into factory inspection to widen its base. In October 2026 it cut FY26 guidance and announced a CEO change, with the shares near 35p against 110p in spring 2024.
Cameras that measure movement, and software that checks products
Vicon, the Motion Capture division, sells camera systems that track how people and objects move. Hospitals and university labs use them for gait and injury research. Film, games and virtual-reality studios use them to animate characters. Engineers use them to track robots. In the six months to March 2026, Motion Capture was 79% of revenue, with a gross margin of about 66%.
The second division, Vision Metrology (formerly Smart Manufacturing), makes automated inspection and measurement systems. Customers are manufacturers of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, aerospace and automotive parts. One example is checking contact lenses for defects. Two businesses, IVS and Sempre, were merged into Industrial Vision and Metrology Systems (IVMS) on 1 March 2026.
The group serves customers in more than 70 countries and has offices in the UK, Ireland, the US and Germany. It has been listed on AIM since 2001. 17 Jun 2026 9 Dec 2025 11 Jun 2024 18 Jun 2025
A record year, then buyers paused
FY23 was the peak. Revenue rose 53% to £44.2m, driven by Vicon's new Valkyrie camera system. On 5 December 2023 management set a five-year-plan target: grow revenues 2.5 times to £70m, with a 15% adjusted pre-tax margin, by the end of FY26.
Then buying normalised after the supply-chain shortages. The order book fell from £24.0m at the end of FY22 to £11.5m a year later, and to £1.0m at the start of FY25. On 23 September 2024 the company warned that FY24 revenue would be £40-42m, against analyst consensus of £48.6m. Entertainment suffered from the games-industry slowdown. The shares fell from 110p in May 2024 to 60p by September.
In 2025 US funding changes hit academic customers. FY25 Motion Capture revenue fell to £32.0m from £38.6m. The £70m target has not been restated, and the company has not said it is dropped. 5 Dec 2023 23 Sep 2024 5 Dec 2024 18 Jun 2025 9 Dec 2025
Buying into factory inspection, launching AI capture
To reduce reliance on motion capture, the company bought IVS for £8.1m in cash and shares in November 2023. In October 2024 it bought Sempre for up to £5.5m. In 2025 it added Amber Optix, which makes contact-lens inspection systems. Smart Manufacturing revenue rose from £2.9m in FY24 to £12.8m in FY25, with 38% organic growth.
In March 2025 Vicon launched Markerless, AI-based capture that needs no suits or markers. It started with 10 beta customers, and management expected only modest revenue in FY25.
The cash pile paid for this. Net cash fell from £64.8m in FY23 to £37.3m in FY25, after acquisitions, dividends and buybacks. FY25 shareholder returns were £12.5m. A £10m buyback finished in May 2026 at an average 51p, retiring about 15% of the shares. 1 Nov 2023 11 Oct 2024 11 Mar 2025 18 Jun 2025 9 Dec 2025 21 May 2026
“Motion Capture revenue was lower, reflecting continued softness in the US and a normalised opening order book.” 9 Dec 2025
A reset under new leaders
FY25 brought a return to growth: revenue rose 8% to £44.8m and adjusted EBIT (operating profit before one-offs) was £2.2m. Gary Bullard became Chair in November 2025, after Roger Parry's nine years. Each division got a new managing director.
Because sales cluster in the final third of the calendar year, the company moved its year-end from September to December. FY26 became a 15-month period. It also merged Sempre and IVS and began leaving a UK office.
On 17 June 2026 it set out a three-year framework: double revenue, lift recurring revenue to about 25%, and reach a mid-teens adjusted EBIT margin. No end date was given. It guided to about £56m of FY26 revenue. In the first half, Motion Capture grew 10% to £16.3m, but Vision Metrology slipped to £4.4m from £5.3m because repeat orders were delayed. 4 Nov 2025 16 Dec 2025 9 Dec 2025 17 Jun 2026 23 Apr 2026
Lumpy orders, thin cushions
The record year was partly a catch-up on a backlog, and the company then had little in hand. Vicon sells large hardware orders that arrive late in the year, so a slow September can reset a whole year. That happened in 2024.
Diversification came, but it has not yet steadied profits. Vision Metrology reported lower orders in the first half of FY26, delayed rather than lost according to management. Cash returned to shareholders, £10m in buybacks plus dividends, was spent while the cash balance shrank. 23 Sep 2024 9 Dec 2025 17 Jun 2026 21 May 2026
New team, mixed record
Imogen O'Connor, named Moorhouse in earlier filings, became CEO in October 2023 and Zoe Fox CFO in July 2024. Both delivered the markerless launch and the acquisitions. They also saw FY24 guidance missed by a wide margin and the 2023 plan targets slip.
Directors bought shares after the FY25 results at about 43-45p. Chair Bullard and an associate kept buying through June 2026, at 38.5p on the last purchase.
On 7 September 2026 the company said O'Connor would step down for health reasons. Stefan Lampa becomes CEO on 1 December 2026, subject to a work visa. 2 Oct 2023 1 Jul 2024 9 Dec 2025 29 Jun 2026 7 Sep 2026 9 Oct 2026
Guidance cut in October 2026
On 9 October 2026 the company cut FY26 guidance sharply, citing market weakness and project delays. Revenue is now expected at £47-51m, against the roughly £56m it confirmed in June and market expectations of £56.2m. Adjusted EBIT is expected between a loss of £0.5m and a loss of £3.9m, against market expectations of a £3.0m profit. Cash and deposits were £29.5m.
It still bought: Move AI's assets for £525,000 to extend Vicon's markerless products, and Captive Devices (facial capture) for up to £0.75m in September. It also announced a new buyback of up to £3m. Shares were 34.9p at the end of October. 9 Oct 2026 1 Sep 2026
Cost cuts and a smaller promise
Management expects FY27 adjusted EBIT at or above £3.5m. The cost programme has grown: in June it targeted £1.0-1.6m of annualised savings from FY27. In October it put total net annualised savings at £1.5-2.0m.
The June medium-term ambitions have not been restated. Lampa starts on 1 December. A further set of interim accounts, for the 12 months to September 2026, is due by 31 December 2026. 9 Oct 2026 17 Jun 2026
“FY27 Adjusted EBIT is expected to be at or above the current market expectations of £3.5m” 9 Oct 2026
Written by AI from Oxford Metrics's own announcements since Oct 2023 · every paragraph links to its sources