Materialise (NASDAQ:MTLS) reported third-quarter 2026 revenue growth led by its medical business, while higher research and development spending and one-time costs weighed on operating profitability. The company reaffirmed its full-year revenue and adjusted EBIT guidance.
Consolidated revenue increased more than 2% year over year to €67.7 million. Excluding the impact of recent divestitures, including RapidFit and Eyewear, revenue rose nearly 5%, according to Chief Financial Officer Koen Berges. Gross profit increased to €39 million and gross margin expanded 90 basis points from a year earlier to 57.7%.
Adjusted EBITDA was €8 million, or an 11.9% margin, while adjusted EBIT totaled €2.5 million, representing a 3.7% margin. Net profit was €1.4 million, or €0.02 per share. Berges said higher gross profit was more than offset by increased R&D investment and operational one-time costs.
Medical Segment Drives Growth
Medical revenue increased nearly 10% year over year, with both medical device and medical software sales rising about 10%. The segment generated adjusted EBITDA of €10 million, unchanged from the prior-year quarter, for a 27.4% margin, despite increased targeted R&D spending.
Chief Executive Officer Brigitte de Vet-Veithen said the company continued investing to expand adoption of personalized medical solutions. In its craniomaxillofacial, or CMF, business, Materialise signed an agreement with Ukraine’s Superhumans Center to support reconstructive surgery for patients and war victims. The partnership includes patient-specific surgical solutions, standard plates, access to the company’s software ecosystem, and specialist training at medical universities in Kyiv and Lviv.
The company also introduced ready-to-use sterile packaging for CMF solutions and launched a new version of Mimics Enlight CMF, enabling clinical teams to prepare and review 3D surgical plans within an integrated workflow.
In cardiac care, Materialise expanded its AI-powered Mimics planning offering with a workflow for transcatheter aortic valve-in-valve replacement procedures. The company said the functionality automates several planning steps while allowing clinicians to retain control of clinical decisions. Its soft-tissue business also added a liver resection planning and intraoperative-support workflow for thoracic surgery applications.
Software Revenue Declines as Sales Cycles Lengthen
Software revenue declined just over 4% to €9.9 million, reflecting cautious customer spending and longer sales cycles, Berges said. Recurring revenue represented 84% of software revenue during the quarter. Adjusted EBITDA for the segment fell to €1.5 million, or a 15% margin, as the company continued investing in its CO-AM platform.
De Vet-Veithen said sales cycles for CO-AM, which is intended to support series additive manufacturing, involve more extensive engagement from both customers and Materialise than the company’s traditional pre-print prototyping software. She cited those extended sales processes as a factor weighing on software revenue.
The company said it closed strategic CO-AM NPI deals with customers in focus industries, particularly aerospace. It also integrated CO-AM Brix with Identify3D technology, allowing protection, traceability and user rights to be managed at an individual-part level when multiple parts from different owners are included in the same production build.
Manufacturing Mix Shifts Toward Series Production
Manufacturing revenue declined 6% to €21.3 million, though revenue increased 1.5% excluding divestitures. Adjusted EBITDA improved to a loss of €0.3 million from a loss of €0.8 million a year earlier.
The company said revenue from series production rose more than 30% year over year, driven by aerospace, semiconductor and defense demand. That growth was partly offset by softer prototyping demand. De Vet-Veithen said series production and prototyping have become “relatively balanced” within the manufacturing business, though the company did not disclose the precise split.
Materialise invested in additional metal additive-manufacturing capacity intended to support faster production of larger components, particularly for defense applications. The investment will also contribute production data for software-based quality-assurance research under the European SOMUSA project for metal 3D-printed aerospace components.
Its Materialise Motion business reported increased adoption of Phits Dynaprint, an orthotic insole offering recently introduced to a limited number of U.S. centers. Volumes in the U.K. and Ireland doubled after the initial launch, while total volumes tripled sequentially following North American expansion, management said.
Cash Position Strengthens; Guidance Reaffirmed
Materialise ended the quarter with €153.5 million in cash and €71 million in gross debt, following a final €15 million drawdown under an existing committed credit facility. Net cash rose by nearly €12 million from the start of the year to €82.5 million.
- Third-quarter operating cash flow was nearly €10 million.
- Cash flow after investing activities was €11.4 million, including €4 million in government grants tied to prior capital investments.
- Year-to-date operating cash flow was €24.7 million, while free cash flow reached €22.8 million, more than double the prior-year level.
- The company spent €7.5 million on share repurchases during the first nine months, acquiring nearly 1.5 million ADSs, or 2.4% of the share base as of Sept. 30.
For full-year 2026, Materialise reaffirmed revenue guidance of €273 million to €283 million and adjusted EBIT guidance of €12 million to €14 million. De Vet-Veithen said the company plans to maintain cost control and cash generation while increasing investment in its focus areas.
About Materialise (NASDAQ:MTLS)
Materialise NV is a Belgium-based company that develops software and provides services for additive manufacturing, commonly known as 3D printing. Its technologies are used by manufacturers, medical professionals and researchers to design, prepare, manage and produce three-dimensional parts and devices.
The company’s software portfolio includes solutions such as Magics for preparing and managing 3D-printing jobs, the Mimics Innovation Suite for processing medical imaging data and creating patient-specific models, and 3-matic for advanced design and engineering applications.
