SCHMID Group: Panel-Level Packaging and the AI Inflection

A small-cap equipment maker pivots hard into glass-core substrates and panel-level packaging, backed by a cleaner balance sheet and a reinvigorated order book.

SHMD · Earnings Call · 2026-05-19

The Turnaround Year

SCHMID Group ended 2025 with two distinct halves — a first half stalled by tariff-related order delays and a second half that saw revenue rebound to roughly EUR 50 million and EBITDA margin back to ~13%. CFO Arthur Schuetz, who joined in January and personally invested, made more than a financial restatement: he renegotiated the balance sheet, cut overhead, and set a new cadence of quarterly trading updates. On the call he was explicit about the trajectory: “we reaffirm our 2026 guidance: revenues above EUR 100 million, adjusted EBITDA margin significantly above 12% and order intake of approximately EUR 114 million.” — Arthur Schuetz, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) · 2026-05-19 The driver is a step-change in AI infrastructure demand. Roughly 60% of the last twelve months' order intake is now tied to AI or optical-module equipment, with management expecting that to reach 70% by year-end. That mix shift is more than a nice-to-have; it is the reason SCHMID is confident about the back-half ramp despite a historically soft Q1.

Panel-Level Packaging: The Inflection

The company's own keyword trajectory tells the story: panel-level packaging and glass core substrates now rank among the highest-momentum terms, and they are precisely where SCHMID claims differentiation. CSO Roland Rettenmaier framed it as a convergence — wafer-level players moving to panels and flip-chip BGA substrate makers adding functionality via glass cores. He believes the tipping point is near:

We do see this tipping point or the conversion then here in 2027.
Roland Rettenmaier, Chief Sales Officer (CSO) · 2026-05-19

The company's new product families — the C+, L+ (full-panel CMP) and P+ — are already generating meaningful order intake, and management expects the panel-level packaging market to grow three- to fourfold by 2030. In Q&A, Rettenmaier quantified the opportunity: “About 60% of our order intake of the last 12 months is AI infrastructure or optical module related, and this mix is expected to move towards about 70% by the end of the year 2026.” — Roland Rettenmaier, Chief Sales Officer (CSO) · 2026-05-19 The company is not just riding a wave; it is positioning as a premium supplier where yield is paramount as package sizes grow to 120x120mm.

A Cleaner Balance Sheet

Financially, 2025 was a year of repair. Working capital turned negative at EUR 13 million, but the company has since replenished the gap and expects roughly EUR 20 million of investment this year on normalized operations. CFO Schuetz outlined the deleveraging: debt was cut by ~EUR 31 million through shareholder loan conversions, leaving primarily low-rate property leases and a $30 million convertible (with $18 million still outstanding). A $30 million standby equity line provides backstop without immediate dilution. “our balance sheet is now in a good position and significant financial flexibility is available,” — Arthur Schuetz, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) · 2026-05-19 he said — a big change from the de-SPAC era constraints. The cost side is also being attacked: the Sprint program targets at least EUR 4 million in sustainable annual savings, and listing-related costs (audit, legal, D&O) are being trimmed. These levers should help margins expand toward the 2022–23 levels of ~20% EBITDA and ~14% EBIT that management considers achievable in the medium term.

Market Backdrop and Conclusion

SCHMID is a small-cap (market cap ~$452M) playing a theme that is recognized globally — advanced packaging and AI infrastructure are recurring keywords across the market's top-75 lists, though no other recent reporter in our sample specifically highlights glass-core substrates or panel-level packaging. That makes SCHMID's focus relatively company-unique. The stock itself has no price-shape data in this context, so we cannot read the tape reaction, but the fundamental narrative is coherent: a company that emerged from a difficult 2025 with a clear technological inflection, a cleaned-up balance sheet, and a back-end-loaded order pipeline. Investors should watch whether the order intake guidance of EUR 114 million is actually realized, and whether the 2027 panel-level packaging ramp arrives as advertised. If the company executes, it could be a meaningful player in the next leg of AI compute — for now, the story is compelling, but execution is the open variable.