CTT Systems AB (publ) (STO:CTT)
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May 12, 2026, 5:29 PM CET
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Earnings Call: Q1 2026

Apr 28, 2026

Operator

Welcome to the CTT Systems Q1 2026 report presentation. For the first part of the presentation, participants will be in listen-only mode. During the questions and answer session, participants are able to ask questions by dialing pound key five on their telephone keypad. Now, I will hand the conference over to the speaker, CEO Henrik Höjer. Please go ahead.

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

Thank you and good morning. Welcome to CTT's quarterly earnings call. I will present Q1 2026 financial results and the outlook going forward. Next slide. Starting with the highlights in the first quarter. We continue to see a momentum in our OEM business. Q1 marked the best OEM quarter since Q1 2020, driven by aircraft build rate ramp up. We foresee strong development going forward. In 2026, airlines struggle from higher fuel costs and flight disruptions. As a result, an increased number of airlines have begun reducing flight capacity and announce additional future cuts. This will lead to lower aftermarket revenues across the industry. However, CTT is not immune, but we will benefit from structural advantage through its installed base on modern long-haul aircraft. Our base case scenario assumes traffic disruptions in Q2, mainly affecting short-haul flights and older wide-body aircraft, mainly in Europe and Asia.

We expect limited impact on our aftermarket revenues. The company's long-term growth drivers, particularly within the OEM segment, are expected to largely remain intact given the aircraft industry's long production cycles and substantial order backlogs. Next slides. Looking at the financial performance in short, comparing the same quarter last year, net sales increased 16% to SEK 66 million. If adjusted for FX impact of SEK 10 million, the increase was 21%. EBIT increased to SEK 10 million compared to SEK 4 million. FX impacted -SEK 1 million. The EBIT margin was 15% versus 7%. If adjusting for one-off project costs and fully implemented cost savings, EBIT margin was 19%. Earnings per share increased to SEK 0.53 versus SEK 0.3 . CTT generated weak operating cash flow of -SEK 9 million versus +SEK 4 million due to payments due in April and late payments. Next slide.

Bridging net sales from same quarter last year reveals small changes overall and comes down to net effects in the aftermarket sales. Aftermarket sales increased mainly due to weak comparable quarter due to inventory reductions in Q1 2025. Net effect +SEK 12 million. Revenue from OEM decreased SEK 1 million. FX offset volume increases. A breakdown of total sales shows that aftermarket sales accounted for 66% and 26% came from system sales. Next slide. Comparing with last year, EBIT increased SEK 6 million-SEK 10 million, driven by SEK 12 million from higher volumes, offset by SEK 1 million by FX and SEK 4 million from negative margins. Next slide. Weak operating cash flow of SEK 9 million. Working capital negative - SEK 70 million due to account receivable payments pushed to Q2 2026 and inventory build-up. This is temporary. We expect better operating cash flow going forward. Next slide.

Net debt amounted to SEK 21 million, compared to -SEK 29 million in Q1 last year. Cash closed at SEK 16 million. We expect to improve our financial position going forward, driven by stronger cash flow, pushing down net debt to negative. Next slide. Let's move to the outlook for Q2 and the full year 2026. For the second quarter, we expect revenue in US dollar to increase compared with the previous quarter, but not exceed the comparable quarter last year. Updated 2026 outlook. For the full year 2026, we expect higher revenues in US dollar, driven by significant volume increases within the OEM segment and higher aftermarket revenues. In US dollar, we expect OEM revenues to increase by 45%-60% and aftermarket revenues by 5%-15%. We no longer expect full year private jet revenues to exceed 2025 levels as several VIP projects have been deferred into 2027.

The outlook for private jet segment has not worsened. The change is primarily related to timing. Retrofit revenues in U.S. dollar are expected to remain at roughly the same level. Next slide. Looking at the aftermarket, inventory levels at the distributors are better balanced. We had a solid Q1, and we view it as a good reference going forward. Next slide. The outlook for CTT's OEM business is strong given planned aircraft ramp-up by Airbus and Boeing. CTT's growth pace primarily depends on Airbus and Boeing's ability to scale production and deliver wide-body aircraft. More new-built aircraft will drive CTT's OEM sales. Boeing 787 is now on rate eight per month, targeting 10 per month later this year. Airbus is at six to seven A350s per month, targeting 12 in 2028.

In addition, CTT aims for even higher growth rates by improving shipset content. CTT will in 2026 start to recognize sales impact from higher A350 selection rates. In addition to line-fit the Flight Deck Humidifier, A350 operators to a greater degree now select humidifiers for crew rests and business class. This will gradually result in a higher average shipset value on every new built A350. Next slide. In private jet, 2026 starts weak with no planned kit deliveries. During the first three quarters, revenues are expected to come mainly from development projects. Airbus Corporate Jets front-running by promoting humidification for ACJ320, the TwoTwenty, and the 330. Prospect pipeline looks good but with uncertain timing. Boeing Business Jets includes humidification as baseline configuration, and we have several VIP opportunities with deliveries scheduled for 2027. Next slide.

We started to deliver the first Jet2.com system last year. Deliveries in 2026 are scheduled to be unchanged compared to 2025, all in Q2. We need additional orders, and we need to obtain availability to install the system in new aircraft. Together with Jet2.com and other airlines, we try to convince Airbus that it should be possible to install our Green Tech system in a new aircraft before delivery, either as line-fit or provisioning for post-delivery modification. Next slide. To summarize, OEM is driven by higher aircraft production rates, indicating steep ramp-up in our deliveries in 2026. Private jet is establishing a higher net sale baseline, though 2026 will be slow. Sales pipeline is strong and revenue should trend higher in 2027. Aftermarket sales in 2026 expected to be higher than 2025, and higher sales will gradually improve EBIT margin in 2026.

I now hand it over for questions and answers.

Operator

If you wish to ask a question, please dial #5 on your telephone keypad to enter the queue. If you wish to withdraw your question, please dial #6 on your telephone keypad. The next question comes from Karl Bokvist from ABG Sundal Collier. Please go ahead.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

Thank you. Good morning. First one is on the OEM side. As you say, production rates, at least the guided ones from the OEMs are indicating that they're heading upwards. Just out of curiosity, in case you're picking up anything in the value chain that could pose a risk to this, or if it's more related to the aftermarket, which we'll get into later here in the Q&A.

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

Thank you, Karl, and good morning. No, I'm not picking up anything else. Listening to the same messages as everybody else. Boeing talked a little bit about certification problems still on the seatings, but other than that, I think they're doing pretty good. The seating problem is usually not affecting the production rates, rather the delivery rates.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

Can you remind us how the lead time looks for you currently when it comes to the OEMs raising production rate and you actually delivering higher systems and booking revenue?

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

I mean, exactly how much earlier we deliver our systems compared to when they are mounted in an aircraft and then finally delivered to the end customer is quite hard to judge. We see that now Boeing has really established production, ramping up steadily from a year ago, five via seven, and now stable on eight. They put orders on us. I would say they're starting to fill up orders in Q4, so we see a steady raise there. On the Airbus side, we're happy that we have now completed the move up from Tier 3 to Tier 2, which gives us better visibility, even if we have very short delivery times to A350. We see that the FX costs are stabilized on a higher level and stable during the year.

I think not maybe answering your question directly, I think it gives you kind of indication on how it looks.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

All right. Thank you. Then, if we head into the aftermarket channel here and how a slower air travel could affect this. We're leaving a year where we've had inventory adjustments, and would you say that the inventory levels among your distributors, first of all, that you have a better kind of track or monitoring on the levels of this, and two, that the levels are now kind of healthy or normalized so that they will not just simply rely on depleting their inventory and that could pose another risk to the aftermarket sales for you?

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

As we stated in the report, inventory levels at the distributors are better balanced. We also saw that we really tracked the end market demand during Q1. We have good visibility in our distributors, sales, and inventories. I don't know if anybody noticed, but we just moved our distribution channel within the Boeing company to a place where we think we are better, or I know that we have a better structure, and we will also have better visibility than we have in the past. We feel confident that we are in a situation where the after market is and the stock levels are balanced and that we have the right distribution channels now.

Coming to the second part of your question, how the ongoing turbulence in the world will affect our sales and, as I said, what we can read so far is that airlines are taking out the non-profitable lines, which is usually short-haul and old aircraft, and all CTT products are on the profitable long-haul businesses on the modern fleets, the modern wide-bodies. Yes, I don't think we will be totally untouched, but I think we can navigate this turbulence in a very good way.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

Thanks. Can you just both like repeat what you said on the retrofit side, how we should think about, I mean, all else equal, maybe there will be some delays or not, but based on kind of your plan as of now, how you think about the retrofit deliveries this year and the next possibly?

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

If we look at retrofit this year, we will continue to deliver systems to Jet2.com. They will be on the same levels as they were in 2025, and those systems will be delivered in Q2. Of course, we continue to look at the market for retrofit of both the anti-condensation system and also the humidification systems. We have no orders yet, and that means that it's very unlikely that we will have any more deliveries affecting our net sales during 2026.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

Understood. Also just going to the cost side, the one-off costs, well, the name says it itself, but just to understand, like, what makes you confident that this will be a one-off item and not something that could arise again?

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

No, but I mean, this cost is linked to today's ACJ330 kit system development project that we signed in 2024 and have been developing together with ACJ and our partner PMV during 2025 and 2026. In a project like that, we also have some costs to our supply chain, and one of those costs came now when the project was finalized, which is natural, and that means that we will not have one-offs like that. If I get a new kit development project, I might have new one-offs like that, but they are always linked to a project.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

Understood. My final one is just apart from the currency, we see a lot of different input materials increasing in price. Just curious how you think about well, cost management on that front and also the possibility of price adjustments to mitigate inflation.

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

If I start with the first part of cost control, our business is not immune from price increases on material. We of course try to have long-term contracts with our supply chain and in most cases that is the case, and there we have a stable cost situation. Where we see big cost increases, we need to take decisions and see can we change the supplier? Is that in our environment a possible way to do it? Linked to that, we also need improvement of Boeing and Airbus in the end. Or can we even, which we have done in some cases, insource the production to lower the cost.

We're constantly working with the cost base on our OEM projects and of course on the VIP side and the aftermarket as well. On the price increase side, looking at the OEM business, we run under long-term contracts, which are fixed for at least a couple of more years. After that, there is a possibility to negotiate with Boeing on the price side. If you look at the price increases on aircraft that they sell, I think there's a possibility to adjust to a higher cost situation that we have seen after the pandemic.

On the Airbus side, we have a little bit better possibility to adjust, and even if it's not great, there is a possibility. As you know, then finalizing it on the aftermarket, our contracts give us the possibility to adjust the prices, and usually the adjustments are in line with the worldwide inflation. Private jet, of course, there is a possibility to price adjust.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

Understood. Just finally, one comment that you talked about one quarter ago was this ambition to get the penetration up to around two-

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

Mm.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

for the full year. I'm just a bit curious how we should, now three months into the year, maybe a bit better visibility on that side. One, how do you think that is progressing and how we should think about the this kind of penetration for the full year?

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

No, but as I said, when I commented the OEM situation, we really see that the volumes are picking up on A350, and that we are seeing a better selection rate going forward. If we are exactly on two when the year ends, I cannot comment on today, but we are very confident that we are growing faster than their production rates on the A350.

Karl Bokvist
Analyst, ABG Sundal Collier

All right. Thank you. That's all from my side.

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

Thank you, Karl.

Operator

As a reminder, if you wish to ask a question, please dial # key five on your telephone keypad. There are no more questions at this time, so I hand the conference back to the speakers for any closing comments.

Henrik Höjer
CEO, CTT Systems

Thank you. Before closing, I will take this opportunity to summarize. Although the business environment for airlines will be difficult with fewer flights, we expect long-term global air traffic growth to resume. CTT is not immune, but we have a robust business model supported by growth, driven by long-term and resilient aircraft production plans. This enables us to continue growing in essentially all scenarios, even if airlines adapt their operations to higher cost levels over an extended period. As a result, we anticipate resilient growth in the installed base of humidifiers, which in turn supports after-market growth and creates additional retrofit opportunities. There will for sure be turbulence along the flight, but we are well-positioned. Thanks for listening.

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