# Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT.LSE)

Canonical: https://gigainvestors.com/s/ONT.LSE

Analysis as of: 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z. Financial observations: FY2012–FY2025.

Listing currency: GBX. Reporting currency: GBP.

## Verdict

Not a wonderful business

Quality tests for Buy: not passed (profit record: fail; earnings resilience is evidence only). Published buy qualification: no.

Share price: GBX 209.60 per share; close as of 2026-10-15.

## Checklist

### understandable: fail

- 1 revenue decline in the last 10 years (informational)

- more than 2 net loss years

- negative average operating margin

- operating margin variation exceeds 0.35

- Financial history: 10 years

- Years with declining revenue: 1

- Years with a net loss: 10

- Operating margin variation: 1.47×

Chart: Operating margin; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: -14.34×

- FY2017: -4.78×

- FY2018: -1.91×

- FY2019: -1.55×

- FY2020: -0.64×

- FY2021: -1.23×

- FY2022: -0.50×

- FY2023: -0.99×

- FY2024: -0.83×

- FY2025: -0.69×

### moat: fail

- ROIC median below threshold

- ROIC worst years below threshold (more than 1 bad year allowed)

- ROIC, median of available years: -52.2%

- ROIC, second-lowest year: -147.5%

- Typical minus recent gross margin: -6.2 pp

- Typical gross margin (annual median): 51.3%

- Recent gross margin (lower of latest and 3-year median): 57.5%

- Years with nonpositive capital: 0

- Capital spending / revenue: 23.2%

- ROIC including acquisitions, ten-year median: -56.3%

Chart: ROIC excluding acquisitions; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: -254.5%

- FY2017: -147.5%

- FY2018: -83.2%

- FY2019: -55.3%

- FY2020: -44.8%

- FY2021: -117.8%

- FY2022: -30.9%

- FY2023: -32.1%

- FY2024: -40.9%

- FY2025: -49.2%

### economics: fail

- owner earnings cash conversion below threshold

- incremental invested capital return below threshold

- working capital as a share of revenue rose more than 10pp and ends positive

- Cash conversion uses consolidated totals: No

- Owner earnings, five-year total: GBP -650M

- Net income, five-year total: GBP -705M

- Return on incremental invested capital: -87.1%

- Working capital / revenue, annual change: 4.7 pp

- Working capital / revenue, change between three-year averages: 39.6 pp

- Working capital / revenue, final three-year average: 63.9%

Chart: Owner earnings · five years; fiscal year observations.

- FY2021: GBP -171M

- FY2022: GBP -98M

- FY2023: GBP -149M

- FY2024: GBP -126M

- FY2025: GBP -107M

### management: fail

- buybacks unrelated to price (informational)

- ROIC first 3 years vs last 3 years: -147.5% vs -40.9%

- Per-share earnings: -0.10 to -0.16 (three-year endpoint medians)

- per-share value declined or ends nonpositive

- five-year and ten-year diluted share growth both above threshold

- Management verdict uses per-share economic progress: Yes

- Ordinary dilution, 10-year annual growth: 6.9%

- Ordinary dilution, 5-year annual growth: 3.9%

- Diluted shares, 10-year annual growth: 6.9%

- Diluted shares, 5-year annual growth: 3.9%

- Per-share value change: GBP -0.05

- Per-share value, starting three-year median: GBP -0.10

- Per-share value, ending three-year median: GBP -0.16

- Buyback history: 0 years

- Debt-funded buybacks: No

- Acquisition spending: GBP 84M

- Cumulative net income, 10 years: GBP -1.0B

- ROIC, first three-year median: -147.5%

- ROIC, last three-year median: -40.9%

Chart: Earnings per share; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: GBP -0.11

- FY2017: GBP -0.10

- FY2018: GBP -0.07

- FY2019: GBP -0.09

- FY2020: GBP -0.08

- FY2021: GBP -0.20

- FY2022: GBP -0.11

- FY2023: GBP -0.19

- FY2024: GBP -0.16

- FY2025: GBP -0.15

### accounting: pass

- Sloan accruals: -13.2%

- Receivables to sales index (DSRI): 0.62×

- Restructuring years, last five: 0

- Earnings backed by cash: Yes

- Accounting red flags: 0

- Goodwill and intangibles / equity: 0.12×

Chart: Sloan accruals; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: -5.0%

- FY2017: 8.2%

- FY2018: 1.4%

- FY2019: -14.3%

- FY2020: 0.9%

- FY2021: -13.5%

- FY2022: -5.1%

- FY2023: -2.2%

- FY2024: -4.9%

- FY2025: -13.2%

## Holders

## Price story

Down 70% since Dec 2021 · sales +22.2%

Story as of 2026-10-16T10:00:10.914Z; price observation 2026-10-15.

### Sales · FY2024–2025

sales +22.2%; source https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/; observed 2026-10-16.

- FY2016: GBP 4.5M 

- FY2017: GBP 14M 

- FY2018: GBP 33M 

- FY2019: GBP 52M 

- FY2020: GBP 114M 

- FY2021: GBP 134M 

- FY2022: GBP 199M 

- FY2023: GBP 170M 

- FY2024: GBP 183M 

- FY2025: GBP 224M 

### Gross margin · FY2025

gross margin 58.6%; source https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/; observed 2026-10-16.

- FY2016: 14.2% 

- FY2017: 48.8% 

- FY2018: 49.2% 

- FY2019: 49.2% 

- FY2020: 41.2% 

- FY2021: 54.8% 

- FY2022: 62.3% 

- FY2023: 53.3% 

- FY2024: 57.5% 

- FY2025: 58.6% 

## Owner memo

Memo as of 2026-10-16T08:06:05.509Z.

### How it makes money

Operates in biotechnology; annual sales are GBP 223.9 million.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); FY2025: revenue 223900000; grossProfit 131300000; margin = grossProfit / revenue.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16); ONT.LSE: Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc engages in the research, development, manufacture, and commercialization of a novel generation of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequencing technology that allows analysis of DNA or RNA. The company offers MinION Mk 1D, a portable device for DNA and RNA sequencing; and GridION and GridION Q, a compact bench top device that delivers a version of hardware, software, and chemistry. It also provides PromethION products, such as PromethION 2, PromethION 24, and PromethION 48. The company has a collaboration with Cepheid to develop and commercialize automated infectious disease sequencing solutions. It operates in the region of Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, and the Asia Pacific. The company was formerly known as Oxford NanoLabs Limited and changed its name to Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc in May 2008. Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Oxford, the United Kingdom.

### Why customers stay

Margins ranged from 53.3% to 58.6% during 2023–25; it lost 52.2% on its capital.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); FY2023: grossProfit / revenue = 53.3%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); FY2024: grossProfit / revenue = 57.5%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); FY2025: grossProfit / revenue = 58.6%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); 10-year return on capital observations [[2016,-2.5453901096175784],[2017,-1.4750681554113414],[2018,-0.8315113759479956],[2019,-0.5532126873100929],[2020,-0.44845419298695444],[2021,-1.178303992312713],[2022,-0.30938066927803076],[2023,-0.320614240737888],[2024,-0.40942486697603525],[2025,-0.4917314629258517]]; median -0.5224720751179723. ROIC follows the displayed moat series; financial companies use return on tangible equity.

### Where the cash goes

Paid no dividends in 10 years.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); Dividend observations: [[2016,0],[2017,0],[2018,0],[2019,0],[2020,0],[2021,0],[2022,0],[2023,0],[2024,0],[2025,0]]. Zero only counted when supported by a complete cash-flow statement.

### Are managers owners

Insiders own 42.4% of the company.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16); ONT.LSE SharesStats.PercentInsiders = 42.365 percentage points; cache date 2026-10-16.

### What the price says

The price is 9 times annual sales; cash earnings are negative.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16T07:39:37.848Z); Closing price 209.6 GBX; reporting-to-trading FX 100; FY2025 annual sales per share 0.2329891150690471; price multiple 8.996128421616794. FY2025 cash earnings/share -0.11155173352122308. Closing-price date 2026-10-15.

## Monthly share-price history (GBX per share)

- 2021-09: GBX 612.60 per share

- 2021-10: GBX 558.50 per share

- 2021-11: GBX 690.00 per share

- 2021-12: GBX 698.00 per share

- 2022-01: GBX 485.00 per share

- 2022-02: GBX 459.50 per share

- 2022-03: GBX 398.00 per share

- 2022-04: GBX 306.50 per share

- 2022-05: GBX 322.00 per share

- 2022-06: GBX 276.50 per share

- 2022-07: GBX 318.50 per share

- 2022-08: GBX 274.00 per share

- 2022-09: GBX 256.50 per share

- 2022-10: GBX 262.50 per share

- 2022-11: GBX 256.00 per share

- 2022-12: GBX 246.50 per share

- 2023-01: GBX 236.50 per share

- 2023-02: GBX 209.00 per share

- 2023-03: GBX 222.50 per share

- 2023-04: GBX 229.80 per share

- 2023-05: GBX 270.20 per share

- 2023-06: GBX 213.20 per share

- 2023-07: GBX 263.80 per share

- 2023-08: GBX 238.00 per share

- 2023-09: GBX 205.60 per share

- 2023-10: GBX 203.60 per share

- 2023-11: GBX 193.60 per share

- 2023-12: GBX 208.20 per share

- 2024-01: GBX 160.30 per share

- 2024-02: GBX 133.00 per share

- 2024-03: GBX 121.50 per share

- 2024-04: GBX 98.35 per share

- 2024-05: GBX 107.30 per share

- 2024-06: GBX 94.40 per share

- 2024-07: GBX 120.80 per share

- 2024-08: GBX 117.30 per share

- 2024-09: GBX 159.10 per share

- 2024-10: GBX 134.50 per share

- 2024-11: GBX 159.10 per share

- 2024-12: GBX 128.80 per share

- 2025-01: GBX 145.80 per share

- 2025-02: GBX 112.60 per share

- 2025-03: GBX 102.30 per share

- 2025-04: GBX 118.90 per share

- 2025-05: GBX 123.40 per share

- 2025-06: GBX 136.90 per share

- 2025-07: GBX 204.00 per share

- 2025-08: GBX 180.90 per share

- 2025-09: GBX 152.30 per share

- 2025-10: GBX 137.00 per share

- 2025-11: GBX 140.90 per share

- 2025-12: GBX 128.40 per share

- 2026-01: GBX 155.00 per share

- 2026-02: GBX 133.10 per share

- 2026-03: GBX 110.80 per share

- 2026-04: GBX 112.40 per share

- 2026-05: GBX 143.20 per share

- 2026-06: GBX 124.10 per share

- 2026-07: GBX 113.40 per share

- 2026-08: GBX 176.10 per share

- 2026-09: GBX 217.60 per share

- 2026-10: GBX 209.60 per share

## Annual estimated value (GBX per share)

Historical values use today's bond yield for every fiscal year

Historical values use today's FX rate into trading currency for every fiscal year

Historical values use current restated fundamentals and current commodity classification; they are not point-in-time estimates

## Sources

Estimates depend on assumptions and are not guarantees or investment advice. Underlying data remains subject to its source licenses; public reading does not grant bulk redistribution rights.