Sartorius has been back in positive territory since the beginning of the year. The last three financial years have been marked by doubts about the recovery of the biopharmaceutical investment cycle. Demand has fallen sharply, with 2023 sales 30% lower than in 2022. In 2024, revenues were stable but margins continued to decline. This year, annual growth is now expected to be around 9%, up from 7% previously.
The good news therefore comes from consumables (filters, membranes, bags, and single-use solutions). These high-margin products are essential for the production of biopharmaceuticals. In the first nine months of the year, they posted double-digit growth in all geographical areas: +11.8% in America, +11.2% in Asia-Pacific, and +8.4% in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. At the same time, bioprocess equipment and systems, which had long been penalized by laboratories' cautious investment, are finally showing signs of stabilization.
This recovery in the product mix is also accompanied by good news on margins, as the strict cost control measures implemented by management are bearing fruit: net income has jumped 34.3% to €320m. The balance sheet remains optimal, with net debt at 2.5x current EBITDA.
These positive factors suggest that Sartorius Stedim Biotech is emerging from the bottom of the cycle. Profitability has reached its highest level in three years, and growth is picking up again. These positive factors will need to be confirmed in its annual results. Sartorius Stedim Biotech has decided to discontinue its detailed quarterly reporting on orders, which means that key information needed to anticipate the coming months is currently lacking. In any case, visibility seems better than it has been for two years.
In its wake, the German holding company Sartorius, which owns 73.6% of the French subsidiary, is also making progress.
