Incap grows revenue but margins tightens in Q1
Finnish EMS provider Incap reported revenue growth of 7.3% in the first quarter of 2026, but profitability fell sharply as component availability issues, foreign exchange headwinds, and acquisition-related costs weighed on the result.
Revenue for the January–March period reached EUR 56.0 million, up from EUR 52.2 million in the same period a year earlier. The increase was partly driven by the consolidation of Lacon Group, which was acquired and integrated into Incap's reporting as of February 20. Excluding currency effects, organic growth was flat.
Profitability came under pressure at the operating level. Comparable EBITA fell 14.2% to EUR 5.2 million, representing 9.2% of revenue compared to 11.5% a year earlier. Operating profit dropped 16.7% to EUR 4.8 million. Net profit was broadly unchanged at EUR 3.9 million, against EUR 3.8 million in Q1 2025.
The margin compression had a clear cause. Component shortages – driven in part by surging demand from the AI and data centre segment – pushed certain deliveries into the second quarter. CEO Otto Pukk was direct about the dynamic at play: the same AI-driven demand that is reshaping the broader semiconductor market is straining supply capacity for components used in other segments, with knock-on effects across the EMS industry.
"Over time, we expect component availability to improve as manufacturers increase capacity, and we continue to work closely with our customers to identify alternative component solutions where needed," Otto Pukk said in the press release.
Record defence order intake in Q1
Order intake developed positively across the quarter, which Pukk described as laying an important foundation for the rest of the year. The defence segment was a particularly strong one, with a record high number of orders received — including larger defence orders for the newly acquired units in Germany and Romania. The Lacon acquisition, which added those facilities to Incap's footprint, is also beginning to reduce the company's customer concentration risk — a dependency on its largest customer that management has previously identified as a structural concern.
Pukk noted that volumes began recovering toward the end of the quarter, which he said supports a more positive outlook for the coming quarters.
Incap reiterates its full-year guidance: both revenue and comparable EBITA are expected to be clearly higher than the EUR 214.6 million and EUR 26.1 million reported for 2025.
