I am not particularly convinced about the necessity of the cost-cutting measures. Unless even harder times are expected.
Regarding touch sensors (pellikkelit), the basic investment case hasn’t really changed at all. They still seem to depend on customers, which Canatu can influence very little. As something new, of course, they are not trying to compete in manufacturing touch sensors themselves, but are openly offering reactors to potential competitors as well (which one might read as Mitsui).
The business case for the diagnostics side is also quite clear: validation of the technology’s functionality with a few completed examples. If these work as hoped, the company can transition to becoming a platform technology provider.
On the automotive or robotics, mobility, and defence side, it probably shows that there hasn’t been a head in charge. Now it seems that, among other things, the solar panel development with Denso has been put on ice due to too low return expectations – or at least that’s how I interpreted the discussion. I didn’t quite understand the CEO’s idea of lowering returns per cm² of CNT film – since it’s hard to believe costs scale directly per cm² either. Somehow, I would rather see return expectations compared against risks. After all, Canatu has plenty of patents in the area, and commercializing them is not really in conflict with other business areas. But perhaps production capacity is now being conserved for semiconductor (semi) needs. Although, in my view, the Denso cooperation was specifically a project to develop their own production capacity. But the business unit clearly needs a leader.
So it remains a bit unclear what is being saved for and why, at the expense of development work. But apparently, they are now just waiting for the ripest apples to fall.
[quote="Kroisos_Pennonen, post:654, topic:53932"]
Such catchphrases aren’t just thrown around unless they believe they are the technological leader…(?)
[/quote>
They can easily be thrown around even without being anything special, so I wouldn’t draw any major conclusions from individual remarks. Basically, every company claims to be top-tier in their field.
I must say, though, that the strategic update and presentation created quite a positive impression. Previously, the communication and strategy had been pretty hazy, vague, and messy. It’s still not completely clear, but at least the message is tied to some more concrete actions, such as organizational restructuring and new leaders. The CEO at least managed to give the impression that the captain has the ship under control and a direction has been chosen. Granted, we might end up on the American continent instead of India, but reaching land at all is probably a success in itself. The last year has been spent sailing without any more concrete direction.
Now we are already approaching the €100M market cap when cash reserves are taken into account. At this valuation, it’s starting to become an interesting M&A target!
Does anyone have any thoughts on the FST speculation I wrote in my blog? It looks like FST’s second reactor is related to Samsung’s needs, possibly for the Taylor factory. If this is the case, the relationship extends beyond FST directly to Samsung, either in foundry or memory, which changes quite a bit how the whole reactor order should be interpreted.
Today’s news dug up from Korea. Translated via browser. Aju News.
Semiconductor pellicle manufacturer FST is acquiring additional carbon nanotube (CNT) pellicle production equipment from Finland’s Canatu. This move is interpreted as an effort to expand production capacity for the mass production of CNT pellicles used in Samsung Electronics’ 2-nanometer (nm) foundry process. Analysts estimate that the CNT pellicle business is transitioning from technological development to the mass production preparation phase.
Edit
The targets also build on the following key strategic milestones, which Canatu aims to reach in cooperation with its customers and partners in 2026–2030:
Semiconductor
Qualification of CNT-based EUV pellicles for device manufacturing
Expansion of inspection membrane business
Expansion of CNT-based EUV pellicles to memory chip production
That last one somehow smells like Samsung, but that’s just my own opinion.
Yes, those FST pellicles are definitely going to Samsung. Here is some news where equipment is being ordered for Taylor, which could point to the adoption of CNT pellicles there as well.
Here is a new company report on Canatu from Inderes following the latest news.
We reiterate our Accumulate rating for Canatu, but lower our target price to 7.0 euros (previously 8.5 EUR) in line with lowered forecasts. Canatu’s long-term growth story remains attractive, and the new reactor order from FST confirms our view that Canatu’s technology is in a strong position in the emerging CNT pellicle market. However, the H1 figures were very weak relative to expectations, and the weak outlook for the full year 2026 effectively means kicking the growth can down the road for the second year in a row. Investor disappointment is reflected in the fallen share price, and in our view, Canatu’s current enterprise value (2026e 144 MEUR) is low relative to the company’s potential if the updated strategy succeeds. Thus, we still see the risk-reward ratio as sufficient, but a sustained rise in the share price will likely require concrete evidence of scalable growth in the coming years.
