Bruker Shares Tumble on Q4 Earnings Miss and Weaker Margins Despite Growth Outlook for 2026
Shares of Bruker Corporation (Nasdaq: BRKR ) fell sharply in early trading Friday, falling nearly 10% to 14% after the scientific instruments maker reported fourth-quarter earnings that missed analyst expectations. The stock has traded in a wide range over the past 52 weeks, with a high near $45 and a low around $32, and the recent weakness reflects pressure on major equipment and research costs.
For the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Bruker reported revenue of $977.2 million, which was roughly flat compared to $979.6 million in the prior period. On an organic basis, revenue decreased by approximately 5.1% year-over-year as academic funding and research budgets remained limited.
Adjusted earnings per share of $0.59 fell short of the consensus forecast of $0.65 and were down about 22% from $0.76 a year ago. The company also reported GAAP diluted EPS of $0.10, slightly more than $0.09 last year. The loss of earnings was cited by traders as the main driver of the stock’s decline.
Bruker’s non-GAAP operating margin narrowed to approximately 15.7% from 18.1% in the prior year, reflecting continued cost pressures from costs, capital and mix, as well as volume weakness across key businesses. Organic revenue declines were reported in both its Scientific Instruments and Energy & Super Technologies segments.
For fiscal 2025, Bruker posted revenue of $3.44 billion, up about 2.1% year-over-year, although organic revenue fell about 3.7% after excluding acquisitions and currency effects. Non-GAAP diluted EPS of $1.83 was up from $2.41 posted in 2024. On a GAAP basis, the company reported a net loss of $(0.15) per share, compared to EPS of $0.76 last year. Estimates for the full year also declined, weighed down by lower prices and restructuring charges recorded earlier in the year.
Bruker noted that growth contributions from imports and exports provided strong support for both the quarter and the full year, but demand for organics in basic research and industrial markets remained low. Book-to-bill ratios in the Scientific Instruments business remained above 1.0 for the quarter, indicating some improvement in organizational patterns.
The company provided guidance for fiscal 2026, targeting revenues of $3.57 billion to $3.60 billion, representing approximately 4% to 5% reported year-over-year growth, with organic growth of 1% to 2% and contributions from acquisitions and currency changes. It forecasts non-GAAP EPS of $2.10 to $2.15, about 15% to 17% above 2025 results, though subject to foreign exchange conditions.
Management highlighted ongoing cost-saving initiatives aimed at boosting margins and driving double-digit earnings growth by 2026. The company also noted expectations for improved demand in the biopharma, industrial research, and semiconductor end markets over time.
Bruker’s results come amid broader storms in scientific instruments and research-focused assets, where funding constraints, tight university budgets, and changing industrial research costs have weighed on the bookings. These major pressures also affected the software components and the SaaS sector tied to scientific computing and data analysis, where discretionary research and business IT investment decreased slightly.
Software and SaaS stocks faced similar challenges, with slow organic growth and margin compression reported by several companies as customers delayed non-essential projects and renewals in response to high interest rates and uncertain economic conditions.
The stock’s sharp drop reflects investor disappointment over the per-share miss and the ratio’s decline, despite earnings that nearly matched forecasts. The wide range of trades over the past year underscores the continued volatility of tech names that capitalize on the current large space.
