hVIVO Tipped for Substantial Upside Despite Steep Second Half Delivery Challenge

hVIVO Plc has disclosed that its order book has more than doubled to £65 million, prompting Shore Capital to reiterate its Buy rating and 25 pence target price, notwithstanding the considerable second-half delivery challenge facing the company. The target price implies potential upside of 270% from the current share price of 6.8 pence.

In a note following the company’s trading update, Shore Capital highlighted that the improved order book, which has risen from £30 million at the beginning of the year, coupled with a 45% increase in proposal volumes, has strengthened visibility into 2027 and 2028. First-half revenue declined 33% to £16.3 million, whilst hVIVO anticipates an EBITDA loss of between £4 million and £6 million.

The company has maintained its FY26 revenue guidance of £50 million to £51 million, which implies that approximately £34.7 million must be delivered during the second half. Shore Capital described the update as reassuring, arguing that contract delays should be interpreted as revenue deferred rather than revenue lost. The broker expects hVIVO to return to positive EBITDA during the second half of the year.

Panmure Liberum adopted a more cautious stance, retaining its Hold recommendation and 10 pence target price. Analyst Seb Jantet acknowledged that strong contract momentum meant hVIVO retained a chance of meeting guidance, but cautioned that any headroom has now been exhausted. He noted that the word “broadly” had entered the company’s guidance language.

Panmure Liberum left its forecasts unchanged but emphasised that execution risk remained elevated, compounded by challenging conditions in the human challenge trial market.