Ascom posts 11% order intake rise in H1 2026, confirms guidance
Ascom, the Baar-based provider of mission-critical communications and workflow software for healthcare and enterprise customers, reported a 11.4% increase in incoming orders to CHF 174.5 million in the first half of 2026, up from CHF 156.6 million in the same period a year earlier. At constant currencies the growth rate was 14.6%, driven by wins across all three of the company's geographic regions. The company confirmed its full-year guidance of low to mid-single-digit revenue growth at constant currencies and an EBITDA margin of 10–12%.
Net revenue was broadly flat in reported terms at CHF 139.8 million (H1 2025: CHF 140.0 million), reflecting an adverse currency translation effect. On a constant-currency basis revenue grew 2.6%, with Region North up 1.0%, Region South up 3.5%, and the USA and Canada segment up 4.0%. The Nordic countries, Germany, and growth markets in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia performed particularly well, the company said.
Profitability and balance sheet
EBITDA rose to CHF 13.5 million from CHF 12.1 million a year earlier, expanding the margin by 1.1 percentage points to 9.7%. EBIT improved more sharply, from CHF 5.0 million to CHF 7.2 million, reflecting the benefit of lower marketing and sales costs and reduced general administration expenses as Ascom captures synergies from a regional operating model introduced in 2025. Group profit more than doubled to CHF 5.4 million (H1 2025: CHF 2.2 million), assisted by lower financial expenses relative to the prior-year period.
The gross margin edged down to 47.2% from 48.0%, which management attributed to product mix. Operating cash flow of CHF 14.0 million (H1 2025: CHF 21.2 million) represented a cash conversion rate of 104%; the year-earlier figure of 175% included one-off working capital movements. Net cash at 30 June stood at CHF 25.3 million after the company returned CHF 8.8 million more to shareholders than in the equivalent period, including the completion of a share buyback programme that repurchased 3 million registered shares for CHF 13.4 million with a view to subsequent cancellation.
The order backlog grew 11.3% to CHF 344.6 million, with several contracts described as multi-year frame agreements that provide visibility into the second half of 2026 and beyond.
Market context and competitive landscape
Ascom operates in the clinical and enterprise communications segment, competing with vendors including Vocera (now part of Stryker), Cisco and Zebra Technologies on hardware-integrated workflow platforms, and with a range of software-focused challengers on the SaaS and integration layer. The broader market for healthcare-grade mobile communications is being shaped by two converging trends: the shift from proprietary handsets to BYOD and shared-device architectures running managed applications, and the demand from hospital systems for deeper integration between communications platforms and electronic health records and nurse-call infrastructure.
Ascom's stated emphasis on growing software, SaaS, professional services and recurring customer-care revenues places it alongside a cohort of vendors attempting to reduce hardware dependency and smooth revenue recognition. The company describes its platform as vendor-neutral, a positioning that has become increasingly important as NHS trusts in the UK and integrated delivery networks in North America seek to avoid single-vendor lock-in across their clinical communications stack.
Outlook
Geopolitical volatility remains a stated risk, reflecting exposure to markets in Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East. With an order backlog that now exceeds two years of annualised revenue and confirmed guidance, Ascom enters H2 2026 with a solid revenue foundation. Investors will focus on whether the EBITDA margin can reach the top of the 10–12% target range and on further evidence of the software revenue mix shifting in the second-half results, expected later this year.