Canatu extensive report: Thin film, thick potential

Translation: Original published in Finnish on 4/14/2026 at 7:00 am EEST.

We reiterate our Accumulate recommendation and EUR 8.5 target price for Canatu. Following last year's weak performance, the company's growth story has taken a clear hit, which is also reflected in the share price. Nevertheless, the market for Canatu's CNT-based pellicles is still emerging, and the company's position in it appears strong. Significant growth potential is offered to the company by major customers in the semiconductor sector, as indicated by the targets set for 2030 (revenue 100-150 MEUR and EBIT 25-30%). At its current valuation, we see Canatu's long-term potential as attractive, but its realization still requires patience.

A nanotechnology company developing advanced CNT

Canatu is a nanotechnology company developing advanced Carbon Nanotubes (CNT), related products and production equipment for the semiconductor industry, the automotive industry and medical diagnostics. In recent years, Canatu has moved from the technological development stage to commercialization and grown very quickly, especially among semiconductor industry customers. In 2020–2024, the company’s revenue grew nearly 100% annually, but the trend declined in 2025 (15.6 MEUR, -29%) due to delays in new reactor deliveries. However, Canatu’s unique, patented method of manufacturing carbon nanotubes appears to be a clear competitive advantage, as evidenced by its acquisition of significant customers in the semiconductor sector. This is also reflected in the company's high gross margins (2024-2025: 62.5% and 72.4%) due to its strong pricing power.

Growth potential in semiconductor sector should begin to materialize toward decade's end

Canatu's target markets are still in a very early development stage, but they offer the company a significant market potential (estimated about 3 BEUR) by the end of this decade. In the coming years, the rollout of the latest EUV lithography equipment in the semiconductor industry will be the key driver of the company’s growth, with the rapid development of artificial intelligence driving demand for such equipment. The use of these requires EUV pellicles that protect the photomask in the production process, which can be made from Canatu's CNT. The CNTs produced using Canatu's patented, trade-secret-protected method appear to have superior properties for this purpose compared to those of competitors. The company’s reactors are currently the only CNT pellicle manufacturing solution to reach the commercialization stage, underscoring its strong position in a market expected to experience robust growth in the coming years. In the automotive industry, the demand for ADAS film heaters developed by Canatu, as well as for full windshield heaters currently under development, depends on the progress of self-driving cars and the development of the number of EVs. In medical diagnostics, CNT-based biosensors represent a long-term growth opportunity for the company, with hormone and sepsis testing serving as the initial commercial application.

There is plenty of potential if growth materializes

Last year's weakened revenue and falling short of growth targets have dented Canatu's growth story, which has also been reflected in the sharply declined share price and forecasts. Despite the share price decline, Canatu’s valuation (2026e EV/S 8.7x-9.3x) has priced in expectations of strong scalable growth, for which we believe the still credible long-term growth story provides grounds. The company's reactor business is still progressing in the right direction, which creates a basis for strong earnings growth in the coming years. Should this materialize, the share’s valuation (2029e EV/S ~2x and EV/EBIT 9-10x) would become attractive. Through scenarios modeling growth and profitability at different rates, we have estimated a wide value range of some EUR 5-15 for Canatu, which partly reflects the risks and opportunities associated with the company.