Investing.com -- Raspberry Pi Holdings shares fell over 9% on Friday, reversing most of the previous session's gains as investors took profits after the British chipmaker reported record first-half results and raised its full-year outlook.
The shares had jumped more than 11% on Thursday after Raspberry Pi reported a sharp increase in first-half revenue and said full-year adjusted EBITDA was expected to come in ahead of market consensus.
The stock reached its highest level in several months following the results before retreating on Friday.
First-half revenue rose 90% to $256.9 million, driven by a 17% increase in board shipments to 4.2 million units and a 42% rise in average selling prices. Adjusted EBITDA more than doubled, rising 108% to $40.3 million, while profit before tax increased 216% to $19.6 million.
Accessories revenue rose 46%, while component sales jumped 164%. Gross profit increased 79% to $59.4 million, although gross margin narrowed to 23% from 25%. Gross profit per board nevertheless increased 53% to $12.2.
Direct shipments, excluding licensees, rose 26% to 3.4 million units, reflecting increased adoption by original equipment manufacturers.
The company's order backlog doubled during the first half to 2.6 million units, with demand particularly strong in smart-home and aerospace and defence applications.
The improvement in earnings came alongside a significant increase in inventory. Net cash fell 46% year-on-year to $18.4 million, while inventory increased by $117 million during the first half to $263 million, largely reflecting strategic purchases of memory components.
Raspberry Pi said second-half unit volumes are expected to exceed first-half levels, supported by its backlog and additional production capacity. It also cautioned that the exceptional unit economics seen in the first half had moderated.
Jefferies raised its full-year revenue forecast by 9% to $655 million and its adjusted EBITDA estimate by 16% to $64 million. It increased its board-volume forecast by 3.5% to 8.8 million units, while noting that second-half profitability would be lower because the first half benefited from memory inventory bought at lower prices in 2025.
The broker estimated that this inventory benefit generated an exceptional gain of about $15 million that is unlikely to recur.
Jefferies said demand from smart-home devices, defence products and edge-AI applications remained key growth drivers, while increasing use of Raspberry Pi boards in autonomous and unmanned systems could support higher volumes in coming years.
Raspberry Pi has a market capitalisation of about £1.3 billion.
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