This article first appeared on GuruFocus .
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Net Sales:Increased in Q3 2026, with organic growth of 5% for wholly owned operations.
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Order Intake:Grew organically by 5% for wholly owned operations; order backlog rose to SEK8.2 billion.
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Adjusted EBIT:Record high of SEK1,213 million, with a 16.9% operating margin.
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Net Asset Value:Up 2.5% in first nine months (adjusted for dividend) to SEK216 per share; SEK223 per share as of November 2.
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Net Debt:Decreased from SEK12.3 billion to SEK11.5 billion, about 8% of market value of investments.
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Listed Portfolio:Value development of minus 5.2% in first nine months (adjusted for dividends and portfolio changes); portfolio value SEK82.3 billion as of November 2, total return 0.8% year to date.
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M&A:Net SEK900 million of annual net sales added so far this year; seven acquisitions completed across wholly owned operations.
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Group (Bemsiq):Organic order intake growth of 19%, organic net sales growth of 12%; adjusted operating profit SEK148 million, 25.2% margin.
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Calian:Organic net sales growth of 28%; adjusted operating profit SEK105 million, 19.3% margin.
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Hultafors Group:Organic net sales growth of 2%; adjusted operating profit SEK304 million, 18.6% margin (including SEK44 million positive impact from US IEEPA tariff repayment).
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Inovalis:Organic order intake growth of 13%; net sales growth of 3%; adjusted operating profit SEK120 million, 14.3% margin.
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Latour Industries:Order intake growth of 36% (16% organic); net sales growth of 13% (1% organic); adjusted operating profit SEK61 million, 13.3% margin (all-time high for current portfolio mix).
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Nord-Lock Group:Organic order intake growth of 26%, organic net sales growth of 12%; adjusted operating profit SEK171 million, 29.7% margin.
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Swegon:Organic order intake growth of 8%; net sales growth of 1% (2.3% organic); adjusted operating profit SEK304 million, 12% margin.
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Financial Targets (last 12 months):Growth of 3.6% (7% adjusted for currency), EBIT margin of 14.8%, return on operating capital of 14.8%.
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Release Date: November 03, 2026
For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript .
Positive Points
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Investment AB Latour ( IVTBF ) reported a record high adjusted operating profit of SEK1,213 million with a strong margin of 16.9% in Q3 2026.
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Organic order intake and net sales both grew by 5% in the quarter, supported by previously postponed projects and market share gains.
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The order backlog increased to SEK8.2 billion, providing a solid foundation for revenue growth in the coming quarters.
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Several wholly owned operations performed strongly: Nord-Lock achieved a record quarter with a 29.7% margin, Calian grew organically by 28%, and Latour Industries reached an all-time high margin of 13.3%.
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Net debt decreased to SEK11.5 billion, corresponding to about 8% of the market value of investments, leaving headroom for further acquisitions.
Negative Points
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The listed portfolio value decreased by 5.2% during the first nine months of the year, underperforming the SIXRX index which rose 10.8%.
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Parts of the traditional construction industry, particularly residential new build in Europe, remained subdued, negatively impacting companies like Swegon and Innovalift.
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Hultafors Group faced a challenging market environment with only 2% organic sales growth, and its PPE segment remained broadly flat.
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Currency headwinds persisted for the first nine months, with a negative 2% translational FX effect, despite a slight tailwind in Q3.
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The share price has historically traded at a discount to net asset value, although the discount narrowed to 1.8% as of the latest date.
Q & A Highlights
Q: Swegon's organic order intake remained strong, but organic sales growth slowed to 2% in Q3 from Q2. What is driving the gap, and is it related to production bottlenecks? A: CEO Johan Hjertonsson and CFO Mikael Albrektsson explained that the slowdown is not due to capacity constraints but reflects the timing of larger, postponed projects with longer lead times. Order intake and sales have a one-to-one correlation over time, so the orders exist and will be delivered in coming quarters.
Q: How should we think about the phasing of the large India order Swegon took in Q2? A: CFO Mikael Albrektsson said the India project is one of the larger orders with a longer delivery time, so it will be delivered over multiple coming quarters rather than in a single period.
Q: Should the improving demand picture be interpreted as unchanged momentum going into Q4 from Q3? A: CEO Johan Hjertonsson cautioned that markets remain volatile given the geopolitical situation, but said he is more optimistic about demand going forward. He noted the group is no longer at the bottom of the economic cycle and underlying demand is better than two quarters ago, with nothing so far materially changing that view.
Q: Industrial operations posted nearly a 3 percentage point EBIT margin improvement in Q3. How much came from postponed project deliveries, better volumes, efficiency measures and FX, and how sustainable is this? A: CEO Johan Hjertonsson attributed the improvement to a mix of factors: a smaller part from postponed projects now being delivered, an improving market, long-term investment in product development and R&D, market share gains, and strong cost control driving good drop-through. CFO Mikael Albrektsson clarified that FX was only a slight 0.5% translational tailwind in the quarter, with a negative 2% effect year-to-date, so the result was not FX-driven.
Q: Should we expect similar incremental margins on additional sales as volumes recover, or were there specific factors making earnings conversion unusually favorable this quarter? A: CEO Johan Hjertonsson described it as a "clean quarter" what you see is what you got with good drop-through from the efficient businesses Latour has built. He expects similarly good drop-through if earnings continue to increase.
Q: Are structural growth areas such as data centers, refurbishment and energy efficiency at Swegon becoming large enough to drive attractive growth even without a broader construction recovery? A: CEO Johan Hjertonsson said yes, noting AI-driven data centers are only a very small part of Swegon's growth. Swegon is well positioned in building energy efficiency, where high heating and energy costs and demand for good indoor air climate support structural demand. CFO Mikael Albrektsson added that Swegon's order intake development through the year, despite weak classic residential construction, is a testament to its ability to find other growth segments.
Q: Private asset valuations rose significantly in Q3. How much was driven by higher earnings versus changes in applied multiples, and how representative is current earnings? A: CFO Mikael Albrektsson said some average multiples went up and some went down based on peer groups, with the average very similar to Q2. The value enhancement of wholly owned operations therefore came purely from performance and profitability improvements.
Q: In Q2 you saw early signs of private consumption returning. What are you seeing now? A: Hultafors Group CEO Anders Hulse said the trend continued in Q3. There is not much new house building, but more activity in the private sector, particularly the renovation sector in Sweden.
Q: The strength in PPE versus Hardware appears to have shifted from Q2 to Q3. What changed? A: Hultafors Group CEO Anders Hulse said Hardware saw good growth in the Americas and Sweden, where the company believes it is taking market share, while the PPE segment continues to face a softer market.
Q: The margin developed nicely year over year even excluding the tariff refund. What initiatives have improved underlying profitability despite weaker demand? A: Hultafors Group CEO Anders Hulse credited several investments over recent years and the integration of acquisitions made over the past six to eight years. Hard work and cost control have been the recipe, and he said the company is better today than a year ago.
Q: Q3 margin was close to 19%, or around 16% excluding the tariff refund. How should we think about a sustainable margin level given modest organic growth? A: Hultafors Group CEO Anders Hulse said that level is a margin to be expected long term, though the company has higher ambitions. CFO Mikael Albrektsson noted these margins have been presented historically and there is no reason they cannot be sustained, while CEO Johan Hjertonsson added that strong margin improvement despite meager top-line growth supports expectations of further margin gains as volumes increase.
Q: Hardware grew about 5% organically while PPE remained subdued. Are you seeing signs of improving demand within PPE, and how much further can earnings rise before construction markets recover more broadly? A: Hultafors Group CEO Anders Hulse described a mixed picture, with some bright spots and some clouds, and said he cannot point to a clear trend in either direction. CEO Johan Hjertonsson added that short-term sales are somewhat weather dependent, with a cold winter supporting growth.
For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript .
