Shares of SECO S.p.A. surged 10.51% to $3.89, nearing the 52-week high of $3.90, after the Italian embedded computing maker issued record quarterly revenue guidance and outlined a strong outlook driven by its physical AI and robotics strategy.
SECO guided Q3 revenue to approximately €60 million, representing about 25% year-over-year growth and the highest single-quarter revenue in the company's history. The second half is on track for roughly €121 million in total revenue, implying about 24% growth over the comparable period in 2025. Full-year 2027 revenue guidance was raised to at least €270 million, substantially above the previous market consensus of €245 million.
First-half 2026 net sales came in at €98.7 million, essentially flat year-over-year compared with €98.4 million in the same period last year but up 3% sequentially. Gross profit margin expanded to 54.2%, up 80 basis points from 53.4% in the first half of 2025, with second-quarter gross margin reaching 56.0%.
Adjusted EBITDA contracted to €18.5 million (18.7% margin) from €20.1 million (20.5% margin) a year earlier. Adjusted net income fell to €5.5 million (5.6% margin) from €7.3 million (7.4% margin). Earnings were weighed down by €1.9 million in non-cash stock option plan expenses, €0.4 million in transaction costs, and €0.6 million in foreign exchange losses. Payroll costs rose €1.9 million as the company added roughly 20 indirect employees in R&D and logistics, while cost of services and other operating expenses increased €0.9 million.
Order momentum remained strong. Bookings through July reached €155.1 million, up 55% year-over-year from €99.8 million, supported by a book-to-bill ratio of 1.4x. SECO secured over 50 new design wins in the first half and maintains 50 ongoing R&D projects across an ecosystem spanning eight technology providers, including silicon partners Qualcomm, Intel, NXP, MediaTek, and Arduino.
Edge computing accounted for 92% of first-half sales at €91.2 million, growing 6% year-over-year. The Clea software business generated €7.6 million, with recurring revenue of €4.9 million growing 13% year-over-year and making up 65% of segment revenue. By vertical, industrial applications represented 41% of revenue, vending 21%, fitness 14%, medical 12%, and aerospace and defense emerged as a new contributor. EMEA markets continued to dominate at 78% of total revenue.
A centerpiece of the growth thesis is a partnership with humanoid-robot maker Neura Robotics. SECO will deliver customized Qualcomm-based solutions integrated into all five Neura robot types—humanoids, personal assistants, robot arms, mobile manipulation platforms, and quadrupeds—with mass production scheduled to begin in Q1 2027. Neura Robotics is expected to contribute at least €25 million in revenue during 2027.
SECO also unveiled an Edge AI mission controller featuring Intel's Panther Lake compute core in a fanless, rugged, battery-powered form factor. Production capacity is being expanded at its Arezzo, Italy facility, which operates 10 assembly lines across 3,500 square meters, and its Hangzhou, China site, which currently runs three lines with plans for 23 additional ones across 3,115 square meters. Combined, the facilities can support up to €350 million in annual revenue.
On the balance sheet, net working capital increased €13.6 million, driven by a €17.8 million strategic inventory build of memory components and PCBs. Capital expenditures totaled €8.8 million, directed primarily toward the two production facilities. Net financial position stood at €47.7 million as of June 30, 2026, with leverage at 1.2 times trailing twelve-month adjusted EBITDA.
CEO Massimo Mauri said the company is well-positioned in the physical AI space, where machines perceive and interact with reality. SECO cited industry projections of a 109% compound annual growth rate for the AI-enabled industrial systems market from 2025 to 2030, a 26% CAGR for robotics, and a 15% CAGR for AI and data operations.
