Soitec raises Q2'27 revenue guidance on Photonics-SOI surge
Soitec has upgraded its second-quarter fiscal 2027 revenue growth guidance to approximately 50% year-on-year at constant currency and scope, up from the more than 30% growth figure it communicated alongside its Q1'27 results on 22 July 2026. The Grenoble-based semiconductor materials group attributed the revision to accelerating demand for its Photonics-SOI wafers, improved visibility on near-term customer ordering patterns, and its capacity to flex supply accordingly.
The Euronext-listed company generated around 600 million euros in sales in fiscal year 2025-2026 and serves customers across mobile communications, automotive and industrial, and edge and cloud AI end markets.
Photonics-SOI: the numbers
Soitec provided a detailed set of Photonics-SOI revenue expectations for the coming quarters. For Q2'27, the company expects Photonics-SOI revenue to reach roughly three times the Q2'26 baseline of approximately $25 million. Looking across the first half of fiscal 2027, it expects the product line to contribute around 2.3 times the H1'26 level of approximately $50 million. For the full fiscal year 2027, guidance points to Photonics-SOI revenue of between 2.5 and three times the FY26 level, which was slightly above $100 million.
The company also disclosed that it is in the process of signing multi-year Capacity Reservation Agreements with major Photonics-SOI customers. It expects agreements to be in place with eight of approximately ten key customers within the coming weeks, providing a degree of demand visibility that underpins the raised guidance. The rest of the business is expected to perform broadly in line with prior expectations.
Market context
Photonics-SOI, or silicon-on-insulator wafers engineered for photonic integrated circuits, has become a strategically important substrate as data centre operators and AI infrastructure builders chase higher bandwidth and lower power consumption in optical interconnects. The rapid scaling of AI training clusters has accelerated demand for co-packaged optics and silicon photonics components, with major hyperscalers and networking equipment vendors investing heavily in the category.
Soitec occupies a narrow but critical position in this supply chain as one of very few producers capable of supplying the specialised SOI wafers that silicon photonics chipmakers require. That scarcity gives the company meaningful pricing power and makes the multi-year Capacity Reservation Agreements a commercially significant commitment from its customers.
The broader SOI wafer market has historically been dominated by a small number of players, with Soitec the largest by volume. Competitors include Shin-Etsu Handotai and Sumco on the silicon wafer side, though neither has Soitec's specific depth in engineered SOI for photonic applications. The structural tailwind from AI-driven optical interconnect demand is widely expected to persist through the decade, supporting the case for the long-term capacity agreements the company is now securing.
Outlook and investor considerations
The guidance upgrade carries the customary forward-looking caveats required under French securities law, with Soitec noting that actual results may differ materially from those projected. The company does not commit to updating forward-looking statements after the date of publication, which is standard practice for AMF-regulated issuers.
Investors will be watching for Soitec's full Q2'27 revenue release to confirm whether the upgraded guidance materialises, and for any further disclosure on the pricing and duration of the Capacity Reservation Agreements now being signed. The company's ability to expand manufacturing capacity quickly enough to meet the threefold demand increase in Photonics-SOI without compromising yield or unit economics will be the key operational test over the next two to three quarters.