BE Semiconductor Industries N.V.

Revenue for Q2 2026 was EUR 249.9 million, up 68.7% year over year and up 35.2% versus Q1 2026. Q2 net income was EUR 89 million, up 177.3% year over year and up 72.5% sequentially, with net margin at 35.6% versus 21.6% a year ago. For the first half, revenue was EUR 434.7 million and net income EUR 140.6 million, up 48.8% and 121.1% year over year; net margin improved to 32.3% from 21.7%. H1 orders were EUR 562.6 million, up EUR 302.7 million or 116.5% year over year, and trailing-12-month orders reached EUR 987.6 million. Net cash at quarter-end was EUR 164 million, helped by conversion of EUR 175 million of convertible notes due 2029 and strong operating cash flow, partly offset by EUR 125.4 million of dividend payments. For Q3 2026, management expects revenue to increase 10% to 15% versus Q2, gross margin of 63% to 65%, and operating expenses flat to up 5%.

Richard Blickman said Besi is benefiting from strong AI infrastructure spending, especially in photonics, data center, hybrid and AI power management applications, while traditional mobile and industrial markets are also improving from cyclical lows. He emphasized that hybrid bonding adoption is broadening, with 21 customers now using the technology and evaluations ongoing at major memory players for HBM4E and HBM3. His tone was confident but measured, repeatedly noting that the industry remains cyclical even as Besi sees a multiyear AI capex cycle and expanding opportunities in CoWoS, CoPoS and photonics.

Andrea Kopp was not quoted in the transcript, but the financial discussion highlighted that gross margins improved in Q2, while operating expense growth was limited despite more spending on development and customer support. Management said baseline operating expenses fell to 18.9% of revenue in Q2 from 30% a year earlier, supporting net margin expansion to 35.6%. Cash generation was also strong: net cash rose to EUR 164 million, after the EUR 175 million convertible note conversion and EUR 125.4 million in dividend payments. For Q3, management expects gross margin to step down to 63% to 65% because of a less favorable product mix, with opex flat to up 5% on higher development spending.

Analysts focused heavily on hybrid bonding adoption in HBM, asking about qualification status at the top memory customers, the role of JEDEC thickness changes, and whether adoption could slip. Management said the main hurdles are cost and yield, and that qualification takes time; it stressed that evaluations are ongoing and that the technology offers better performance and lower heat, so it still sees meaningful adoption potential. Questions also probed whether CoWoS/CoPoS demand could slow if a large Taiwanese customer shifts mix; management said it does not currently see slowdown, and instead sees continued pressure to expand capacity. Analysts also asked about the unusual Q3 seasonality and the growth of AI power-management orders; management said the business mix has shifted away from smartphones toward AI data center compute, which changes seasonal patterns, and noted that power-management demand is broader than one customer.