Ion Beam Applications S.A.

IBA reported full-year 2025 revenue of EUR 620 million, up EUR 122 million versus 2024, and adjusted EBIT of EUR 27.4 million, up EUR 10 million year over year. Adjusted EBIT margin improved to 4.4% from 3.5% in 2024, even as gross margin declined to 32.2% due to product and project mix. The company ended 2025 with net debt of EUR 58 million, or EUR 41 million on a like-for-like basis excluding ORA, and net leverage of 0.83x adjusted EBITDA. Order intake was strong, with equipment order intake of EUR 452 million, Proton Therapy rooms sold at 12, and backlog at EUR 1.6 billion. For 2026, IBA guided to group adjusted EBIT of at least EUR 32 million and said it expects gross margin improvement versus 2025, while remaining cautious on macro conditions; it reiterated the 2024-2028 outlook and said it still targets around a 10% EBIT margin in 2028.

Olivier Legrain framed 2025 as a milestone year in IBA’s transformation, saying the company delivered on commitments, met guidance, and shifted further from a cyclical project model toward a more consistently profitable platform. He highlighted the Proton Therapy turnaround, stronger service recurring revenue, and record backlog as evidence that the strategy is working. His tone was confident but still measured, emphasizing disciplined execution and continued strategic investment.

Catherine Vandenborre focused on margin drivers, cash, and balance sheet items. She said gross margin fell to 32.2% in 2025 because of lower-margin Proton Therapy legacy contracts and an unfavorable mix in RadioPharma, but she expects gross margin to improve in 2026 as those contracts roll off, services scale, and RadioPharma mix becomes more favorable. She also cited EUR 8.7 million of bad debt tied mainly to two customers, negative operating cash flow from working capital timing, net debt of EUR 58 million at year-end, and the EUR 135 million refinancing package plus the EUR 50 million acquisition term loan used to fund ORA.

Analysts pressed on whether gross margin should improve in 2026, and management said yes, citing better Proton Therapy mix, scaling service margins, and a better RadioPharma mix. They also asked about dosimetry strategy after rumors of an exit; Olivier said Dosimetry remains a valuable part of the portfolio and denied any exit plan. On bad debt, Catherine said the company used a prudential approach under its credit-risk policy and was still discussing two customer cases, with possible partial recovery later. On net debt, management said cash should improve in the second half of 2026 but remain negative at year-end, with a return to positive net financial cash expected in 2027 and continued improvement in 2028.