Three quality companies, three very different growth stories. Richard Beddard looks at Bioventix, Tristel and James Halstead, asking whether stalled growth is temporary or a sign of something more lasting.
Two of the three stocks featured this week were strong growers, but they have fallen fallow. The other is showing no signs of slacking.
Since my last update, nine companies have published full-year results and passed my minimum quality filter.
5 Strikes
Having scrutinised the extent of director holdings and their financial track records, I have awarded six of the new candidates less than three strikes. That means I deem them worthy of further consideration.
| Name | TIDM | Prev AR | Strikes | # Strikes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ULTP | Ultimate Products | 27/10/26 | ? Acquisitions ? CROCI – Growth ? ROCE | 3 |
| BVXP | Bioventix | 26/10/26 | – Growth | 1 |
| TSTL | Tristel | 19/10/26 | – Holdings | 1 |
| JHD | James Halstead | 14/10/26 | – Growth | 1 |
| SCT | Softcat | 14/10/26 | – Holdings ? Growth | 2 |
| FAN | Volution | 8/10/26 | ? Holdings – Acquisitions – Borrowings | 2 |
| NET | Netcall | 7/10/26 | – Acquisitions ? ROCE – Shares | 2 |
| JDW | Wetherspoon (JD) | 2/10/26 | ? CROCI – Debt ? Growth – ROCE | 3 |
| TFW | Thorpe (F W) | 1/10/26 | ? Growth | 0 |
| Click here for our 5 Strikes explainer | 30/10/2026 | |||
I’ll cover the first three in this article, and Volution, Netcall and FW Thorpe soon.
Bioventix [- Growth]
To me, Bioventix is one of the most exotic companies listed in London. It invents monoclonal antibodies derived from sheep, which are mostly used in third party blood testing machines to detect disease. As well as selling the antibodies, it earns royalties when they are used.
I cannot find the annual report for the year to June 2026 in the corresponding section of Bioventix’s website, but last year it was published a couple of weeks after the preliminary results so you should be able to read it there soon.
However, the preliminary results are in. They show that for the second consecutive year revenue at Bioventix contracted modestly, confirming the strike I awarded it last year:
Then, I reported that Bioventix royalties are under pressure as, encouraged by their government, Chinese diagnostic companies are sourcing royalty free Chinese antibodies. Western diagnostics companies are lowering prices and hence the value of Bioventix’s royalties.
Growth depends on novel antibodies in the early stage of commercialisation, particularly relating to the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.
I think we would have to work at Bioventix to truly understand its prospects. This is unlikely since you could almost count the number of people it employs using the fingers of both hands.
In the preliminary results, co-founder and chief-executive Peter Harrison says he expects 2027 to follow the same pattern as 2026 and 2025. Revenue from established products will be under pressure, but “increasingly augmented by sales from our growing Tau and neurology portfolio [principally relating to Alzheimer’s].”
Longer term, he writes, the new antibodies should offset the challenges in the legacy portfolio.
Evidently some traders believe. Bioventix share price has plumbed lows not witnessed for a decade. Following the results, it has climbed to levels not witnessed for a year.
I don’t know whether enthusiasts have jumped the gun. The business is still in my too hard pile.
Tristel [- Holdings]
Tristel is under new management. The unsettling thing about that, is it is the second change in chief executive in as many years. The chief financial officer joined last year too. This explains why they have yet to build up significant shareholdings.
Judging by the headline results, though, nothing is amiss. It looks as though the replacement for the company’s retired founder Paul Swinney simply got an offer that suited them better. Tristel says he chose to relocate (to the USA). As they say, to lose one chief executive is unfortunate. Let’s hope Tristel’s not careless.
Tristel is the only manufacturer of chlorine-dioxide based hospital disinfectant for cleaning simple medical instruments and surfaces.
Chlorine-dioxide is easier to handle safely than other high-level disinfectants. Consequently it does not require washing machines, which are a capital cost hospitals can do without. It is the dominant disinfectant in some UK outpatient departments like ENT and cardiology, and it is growing in popularity around the World.
I can’t find Tristel’s annual report for the year to June 2026 on its investor relations website either, but the numbers in ShareScope from the prelims confirm it has had another good year.
Since I can’t offer you any concerning charts, here is an encouraging one from the consensus of six forecasts in ShareScope:
In the preliminary results, new chief executive Chris Lee confirms the sunny outlook. His job, it seems, is to ensure that a product that is already winning in the marketplace keeps winning.
All eyes will be on Tristel’s newest, potentially biggest and least proven market: North America.
James Halstead [- Growth]
Thank goodness James Halstead has published its annual report for the year to June 2026!
I think it’s remarkable that a vinyl flooring manufacturer should be as outrageously profitable as James Halstead, in terms of Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) and Cash Return on Capital Employed (CROCI).
However, turnover in 2026 was not much higher than it was in 2019. A modest contraction in its last full year followed two more immodest contractions:
The annual report explains that the flooring budgets of its biggest customers, hospitals, schools and prisons, in its biggest geographical market, the UK (43% of revenue), have shrunk in favour of other priorities. James Halstead also had to manage the demise of Headlam, one of its biggest distributors here. Higher costs turned the small ding in revenue into a 13% fall in profit.
Evidently market conditions are particularly tough at the moment, but James Halstead grew pretty slowly in the 2010s.
Challenged for growth, investors may look to the generous dividend for returns. The yield is 6.6%, and it has increased for 50 consecutive years.
The 9p dividend in 2026, was not covered by earnings per share of 8.5p though. We may be getting to the point where the dividend is being funded by James Halstead’s copious cash surplus.
All the 0’s, 1’s and 2’s
So far this year, I have awarded less than three strikes to 96 shares. Twelve have achieved no strikes, 35 have 1 strike, and 49 have two strikes. The links in the table below go to articles in which I discuss these shares.
| Name | TIDM | Prev AR | Strikes | # Strikes | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRV | Porvair | 9/2/26 | ? Holdings | 0 | > |
| MGNS | Morgan Sindall | 25/2/26 | 0 | > | |
| HWDN | Howden Joinery | 26/2/26 | ? Holdings | 0 | > |
| FOUR | 4imprint | 11/3/26 | ? Holdings | 0 | > |
| NICL | Nichols | 11/3/26 | 0 | > | |
| CCC | Computacenter | 12/3/26 | 0 | > | |
| QTX | Quartix Technologies | 25/3/26 | ? ROCE | 0 | > |
| KEYS | Keystone Law | 29/4/26 | 0 | > | |
| KNOS | Kainos Ltd | 18/5/26 | ? Growth | 0 | > |
| CWK | Cranswick | 19/5/26 | ? Growth | 0 | > |
| AUTO | Autotrader | 21/5/26 | 0 | > | |
| TAM | Tatton Asset Management | 16/6/26 | 0 | > | |
| BOWL | Hollywood Bowl | 16/12/25 | – Debt | 1 | > |
| RMV | Rightmove | 27/2/26 | – Holdings | 1 | |
| IMI | IMI | 6/3/26 | ? Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 1 | |
| CKN | Clarkson | 9/3/26 | ? Growth – ROCE | 1 | |
| ROR | Rotork | 10/3/26 | – Holdings ? Growth | 1 | |
| HILS | Hill & Smith Holdings | 11/3/26 | – Holdings ? Acquisitions | 1 | |
| ALFA | Alfa Financial Software Holdings | 12/3/26 | – Growth | 1 | > |
| MAB1 | Mortgage Advice Bureau Holdings Ltd | 17/3/26 | – Shares | 1 | |
| SAG | Science | 17/3/26 | ? Growth | 1 | |
| FDM | FDM | 18/3/26 | – Growth | 1 | > |
| MEGP | Me Group | 23/3/26 | – Growth ? ROCE | 1 | > |
| GAMA | Gamma Communications | 24/3/26 | ? Acquisitions – Holdings | 1 | > |
| NXT | Next | 26/3/26 | – Debt | 1 | |
| BAG | Barr (AG) | 31/3/26 | ? Acquisitions ? Growth | 1 | |
| ELCO | Eleco | 28/4/26 | – Holdings ? Growth | 1 | |
| W7L | Warpaint London | 29/4/26 | – Shares ? Growth | 1 | |
| LSC | London Security | 8/5/26 | – Holdings | 1 | |
| BMY | Bloomsbury Publishing | 20/5/26 | – Growth | 1 | > |
| PETS | Pets at Home | 27/5/26 | – Holdings ? Growth | 1 | |
| HLMA | Halma | 11/6/26 | ? Holdings ? Acquisitions | 1 | |
| XPS | XPS Pensions | 18/6/26 | ? Holdings ? Debt | 1 | |
| TUNE | Focusrite | 29/6/26 | – Acquisitions – Growth – ROCE | 1 | > |
| CBOX | Cake Box Holdings | 30/6/26 | ? Acquisitions – Debt | 1 | > |
| LTHM | Latham (James) | 2/7/26 | – CROCI ? Growth | 1 | > |
| JET2 | Jet2 | 8/7/26 | ? Holdings ? CROCI ? Growth ? ROCE | 1 | > |
| GAW | Games Workshop | 28/7/26 | ? Holdings | 1 | |
| CFX | Colefax | 31/7/26 | ? Growth | 1 | > |
| ASHM | Ashmore | 7/9/26 | ? CROCI – Growth | 1 | > |
| DNLM | Dunelm | 8/9/26 | – Debt | 1 | > |
| ARC | Arcontech | 14/9/26 | – Growth | 1 | > |
| RSW | Renishaw | 23/9/26 | – CROCI | 1 | > |
| TFW | Thorpe (F W) | 1/10/26 | – Growth | 1 | |
| JHD | James Halstead | 14/10/26 | – Growth | 1 | |
| TSTL | Tristel | 19/10/26 | – Holdings | 1 | |
| BVXP | Bioventix | 26/10/26 | – Growth | 1 | |
| RWS | RWS Holdings | 11/12/25 | ? Acquisitions – Growth – ROCE | 2 | > |
| IHP | IntegraFin Holdings | 17/12/25 | – CROCI | 2 | |
| RFX | Ramsdens Holdings | 14/1/26 | – CROCI ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | > |
| STEM | SThree | 27/1/26 | – Holdings – Growth | 2 | |
| GSK | GSK | 4/2/26 | ? Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 2 | |
| REL | RELX | 12/2/26 | ? Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 2 | > |
| ULVR | Unilever | 12/2/26 | – Debt – Growth | 2 | |
| IHG | InterContinental Hotels | 17/2/26 | ? Holdings – Debt | 2 | |
| BA. | BAE Systems | 18/2/26 | ? Holdings ? Acquisitions – Debt ? Growth | 2 | > |
| MONY | Mony | 23/2/26 | – Holdings ? Growth | 2 | |
| CTEC | ConvaTec | 24/2/26 | ? holdings – Debt ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | > |
| HIK | Hikma Pharmaceuticals | 26/2/26 | ? Acquisitions – Debt | 2 | |
| MACF | Macfarlane | 26/2/26 | – Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 2 | > |
| BNZL | Bunzl | 2/3/26 | ? Holdings – Debt – Growth | 2 | > |
| DATA | GlobalData | 2/3/26 | ? Acquisitions – Debt ? ROCE | 2 | > |
| INCH | Inchcape | 3/3/26 | ? Holdings ? Debt – Growth | 2 | > |
| ITRK | Intertek | 3/3/26 | ? Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 2 | |
| JSG | Johnson Service | 3/3/26 | – Holdings – Debt | 2 | |
| PAGE | Michael Page | 5/3/26 | – Holdings? CROCI – Debt – Growth – ROCE | 2 | |
| DOM | Domino’s Pizza | 10/3/26 | – Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 2 | |
| SPX | Spirax | 10/3/26 | – Holdings – Debt ? Growth | 2 | |
| BBY | Balfour Beatty | 11/3/26 | – Holdings ? CROCI ? Growth – ROCE | 2 | |
| SVS | Savills | 12/3/26 | – Holdings – CROCI ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| YU. | Yu | 17/3/26 | – CROCI ? ROCE | 2 | |
| CAML | Central Asia Metals | 19/3/26 | – Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| IGG | IG | 19/3/26 | – Holdings – Growth | 2 | |
| EKF | EKF Diagnostics Holdings | 24/3/26 | ? CROCI – Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| FEVR | Fevertree Drinks | 24/3/26 | – CROCI – Growth | 2 | |
| LUCE | Luceco | 25/3/26 | ? Acquisitions – Debt ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| JIM | Jarvis Securities | 30/3/26 | – CROCI – Growth | 2 | |
| ANP | Anpario | 31/3/26 | ? CROCI – Growth ? ROCE | 2 | > |
| JDG | Judges Scientific | 31/3/26 | ? Acquisitions – Debt – Growth | 2 | > |
| APTD | Aptitude Software | 8/4/26 | – Holdings ? Acquisitions – Growth | 2 | |
| WINK | M Winkworth | 15/4/26 | – Holdings – Growth | 2 | |
| CARD | Card Factory | 28/4/26 | – Holdings – Debt | 2 | |
| IOF | Iofina | 30/4/26 | ? CROCI – ROCE ? Shares | 2 | |
| ASY | Andrews Sykes | 12/5/26 | – Holdings – Growth | 2 | |
| QQ. | QinetiQ | 21/5/26 | ? Holdings ? Acquisitions ? Growth – ROCE | 2 | |
| OXIG | Oxford Instruments | 9/6/26 | – Holdings – Growth | 2 | > |
| REC | Record | 19/6/26 | – Holdings – Growth | 2 | |
| BKG | Berkeley | 24/6/26 | ? CROCI – Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| POLR | Polar Capital Holdings | 1/7/26 | ? Holdings – Growth | 2 | |
| MSI | MS International | 16/7/26 | – CROCI ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| NTBR | Northern Bear | 16/7/26 | – CROCI ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| GDWN | Goodwin | 28/8/26 | – CROCI – Growth ? ROCE | 2 | > |
| AEO | Aeorema Communications | 22/9/26 | – CROCI ? Growth ? ROCE | 2 | |
| NET | Netcall | 7/10/26 | – Acquisitions ? ROCE – Shares | 2 | |
| FAN | Volution | 8/10/26 | ? Holdings – Acquisitions – Borrowings | 2 | |
| SCT | Softcat | 14/10/26 | – Holdings ? Growth | 2 | |
| Click here for our 5 Strikes explainer | 30/10/2026 | ||||
Richard Beddard
Contact Richard Beddard by email: richard@beddard.net, web: beddard.net
This article is for educational purposes only. It is not a recommendation to buy or sell shares or other investments. Do your own research before buying or selling any investment or seek professional financial advice.
