LPKF Laser's Rally Meets a Wall of Short Bets as Order Book Offers a Counterargument
25.05.2026 - 11:53:30 | boerse-global.de
The stock of LPKF Laser has more than quadrupled since the start of 2026, closing Friday at €24.80 — a year-to-date gain of 312.65%. Yet beneath that breathtaking ascent lies an operating reality that has turned decisively negative. Revenue collapsed 32% in the first quarter to €17.1 million, while the operating loss stretched to €6.9 million. Free cash flow burned through another €7.6 million.
That disconnect has not gone unnoticed by short sellers. Voleon Capital Management increased its net short position to 1.81% from 1.70%, according to the Bundesanzeiger. The move, though incremental, joins reported activity from Marshall Wace on the bear side, ratcheting up speculative pressure on a stock that has detached itself from its 50-day moving average by 80.52%.
Order intake, however, tells a more encouraging story. New business climbed 18% in the first quarter to €24.1 million, producing a book-to-bill ratio of 1.4. The company is pulling in significantly more orders than it can ship — a classic forward indicator, but one that requires execution follow-through to validate the market's lofty expectations.
Management has set a 2026 revenue target of €105 million to €120 million, with an adjusted EBIT margin ranging from minus 3.0% to plus 4.5%. Restructuring costs under the "North Star" program will carve out an additional three to four percent of revenue. No dividend has been declared.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying LPKF Laser?
Boardroom battle and a semiconductor bet
The annual general meeting in June promises to be contentious. An opposition shareholder motion calls for the board of management to be denied discharge and demands an immediate capital increase to fund more aggressive expansion into semiconductor packaging. The supervisory board recommends rejecting the motion.
Meanwhile, the supervisory board itself is due for a change. Dr. Arne Schneider, CEO of Elmos Semiconductor, has been nominated to replace the departing Dr. Dirk Michael Rothweiler. Schneider's deep industry experience aligns squarely with LPKF's strategic pivot toward its LIDE technology, which enables precision laser processing of glass substrates for next-generation chip packages. The internal label for this push is "Advanced Semiconductor Packaging," and management sees it as the medium-term growth engine.
Concrete series orders from the chip industry have yet to materialize in volume. Until they do, the rally remains anchored more in narrative than in numbers.
On the ground, three trade shows and a leaner factory
LPKF Laser at a turning point? This analysis reveals what investors need to know now.
LPKF is presenting its capabilities at three international exhibitions this spring: the Higher Education Expo China in Nanchang, the ECTC in Orlando, and the SPEXA in Japan. No specific customer contracts have been disclosed from these events.
Operationally, North Star has consolidated production in Suhl, closed the Fürth site, and extended a syndicated loan agreement early through 2028. Management's long-term target is a double-digit operating EBIT margin.
Technically, the stock's relative strength index has slipped to 25.7, deep in oversold territory after a 365% climb from its 52-week low of €5.35. That suggests near-term exhaustion — but whether the correction comes from short covering or profit-taking will hinge on whether the semiconductor dream starts to produce real cash flows. The AGM in June will offer the clearest signal yet.
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