Continued high margins and increased acquisition activity

Continued high margins

In Labtech, the EBITA margin increased by one percentage point to 13.1 percent and in Medtech the EBITA margin amounted to 12.8 percent, only slightly below the very high level in the first quarter of 2025. The positive margin trend is continuing in most companies, driven by long‑term improvement efforts that are now yielding results and by the continued development of the portfolio towards more advanced products. The gross margin increased by approximately one percentage point compared with the first quarter of 2025.

Sales in a positive trend

AddLife’s companies ended 2025 on a strong note and sales were therefore initially somewhat weaker at the beginning of the quarter. However, order books have quickly been replenished and in March sales growth was good. For the quarter as a whole, sales declined slightly compared with the previous year, but adjusted for the divested endoscopy business in the United Kingdom (approximately SEK 60 million), organic growth was 3 percent in the quarter.

The divestment of operations in the United Kingdom and doctors’ strikes in Spain held back growth, but the underlying performance in Medtech was positive. Plans for increased activity and efficiency in the UK healthcare system have long been communicated, but no clear signs of change could previously be observed. During the first quarter, increased activity within healthcare could be noted. This higher level of activity appears to have resulted in reduced waiting lists and higher capital equipment sales. In Spain, growth in local currency was good despite the negative impact of doctors’ strikes in February and March.

Organic growth in Labtech was stable and increasing, driven primarily by previously won tenders, increased market shares and new products. In the research segment, a clear increase in demand was noted after a prolonged period of uncertainty regarding research funding.

Advanced products driving growth and margins

For some time, AddLife’s companies have intensified their efforts to add new advanced products to their portfolios. This includes established product portfolios from global suppliers as well as new innovative products that match the companies’ customer bases and areas of expertise.

The initiatives in robotic surgery involve several AddLife companies, and a number of supplier relationships have been established in a short period of time. The first installations have been completed and a healthy business in consumables and service agreements has been established.

Several AddLife companies are also established in gene sequencing, and the list of suppliers is extensive. In 2025, genomics and gene sequencing accounted for approximately SEK 400 million in sales within AddLife, market growth is about 10–15 percent per year and the potential to gain further market share is good.

Strong balance sheet and increased acquisition pace

The balance sheet was strengthened during 2025 and the leverage ratio (net debt in relation to EBITDA) amounted to 2.3 at the end of the first quarter. This is significantly better than the ambition level (below 3.0) communicated in 2023. With the ambition level achieved and exceeded, AddLife has now increased the pace of acquisitions.

In March, the UK Medtech company BioSpectrum Ltd was acquired. The company is a fast‑growing, leading distributor of innovative products and services in urology, gynaecology and general surgery. BioSpectrum has annual sales of approximately SEK 75 million and margins that are higher than the average for AddLife’s Medtech companies.

In April, CoaChrom was acquired, an Austrian distributor focusing on advanced coagulation diagnostics for clinical laboratories and the pharmaceutical industry. CoaChrom has annual sales of approximately SEK 110 million and margins that are significantly higher than the average for AddLife’s Labtech companies.

Over the past five months, AddLife has completed four acquisitions, demonstrating that a higher pace of acquisitions has now been established. In addition, all acquired companies have higher margins than the AddLife average, and the acquisitions will therefore collectively begin to make a clear contribution to earnings growth.

Summary and outlook

The first quarter provided a stable start to 2026 and several positive trends can be identified. The focus on advanced products is driving increased growth and improved margins, the market situation in the United Kingdom is showing signs of improvement, and the situation regarding research funding in Northern and Central Europe is looking up.

The situation in the Middle East gives reason to assume that transport and raw material costs may increase going forward, which our companies intend to address through efficiency measures and price increases.

Finally, we extend a warm welcome to BioSpectrum and CoaChrom to the AddLife family. We look forward to welcoming more companies to AddLife in 2026, a year in which we also celebrate 10 years as an independent publicly traded company.

Stockholm April 28, 2026

Fredrik Dalborg
President and CEO