Creo Medical H1 revenue rises 45% as costs and losses fall

Creo Medical Group delivered a stronger first-half trading performance, combining revenue growth with a meaningful reduction in its cost base and underlying operating loss.

Revenue increased by 45% to £3.2 million during the six months ended 30 June 2026. Underlying operating costs fell by 15%, while the continuing underlying operating loss reduced by more than 25%.

The medical device company also maintained its guidance for full-year revenue growth of 50% to 60%. That target relies partly on a stronger second half, continued regional expansion and the completion of a proposed disposal intended to reinforce the balance sheet.

You can read the original company announcement for the complete regulatory statement.

Creo Medical's H1-26 figures

Metric	H1-26	H1-25	Change
Revenue	£3.2 million	£2.2 million	Up 45%
Underlying operating costs	£7.8 million	£9.1 million	Down 15%
Underlying operating loss from continuing operations	£4.9 million	£6.9 million	Down over 25%
Cash and cash equivalents	£7.4 million	£12.4 million at 31 December 2025	Down £5.0 million

The key point is that revenue is moving in the right direction while the operating cost base is shrinking. For a loss-making growth company, that combination is considerably more useful than sales growth achieved through rising expenditure.

Creo's revenue remains modest compared with its costs, however. The £4.9 million underlying operating loss was still larger than the £3.2 million generated in revenue during the period. Progress towards profitability therefore remains unfinished.

Full-year guidance depends on a stronger second half

Management said first-half trading was in line with expectations and retained its guidance for full-year revenue growth of 50% to 60%.

The company identified three factors supporting that outlook:

• A strong order book carried into the third quarter of 2026.
• Creo's usual second-half-weighted revenue profile, meaning it typically generates more revenue later in the year.
• Expansion into new regions, particularly Latin America.

First-half growth of 45% sits slightly below the bottom of the full-year guidance range. This does not necessarily indicate a shortfall because management has explicitly described the business as weighted towards the second half.

Even so, investors will want evidence of that weighting translating into reported sales. The September interim results should provide greater detail, but confirmation of the full-year outcome will depend on execution during the remainder of 2026.

Lower costs are improving the operating picture

Underlying operating costs declined from £9.1 million to £7.8 million, a reduction of £1.3 million. Creo attributed this to efforts to scale its commercial platform, simplify the business and reduce operating expenditure.

The disposal and outsourcing of its manufacturing operations, announced in April and completed during the second quarter, forms part of that strategy. Outsourcing means using an external provider rather than retaining the activity within the group.

Management believes the resulting structure offers a more scalable operating model and supports the path towards profitability. The early numbers are encouraging: the underlying operating loss from continuing operations fell from £6.9 million to £4.9 million.

That £2.0 million improvement is significant, although Creo has not yet reached profitability or sustainable cash generation. Investors should therefore distinguish between a clearer route towards those goals and actually achieving them.

The update follows the progress outlined in Creo's FY25 trading update, when revenue growth and operating loss reduction were also central themes.

Funding remains the main financial dependency

Creo ended June with £7.4 million of cash and cash equivalents, down from £12.4 million at the end of December 2025.

During May, the company completed an equity placing that raised approximately £5.5 million. It also established a £2.0 million convertible loan note subscribed for by the Development Bank of Wales. A convertible loan note is debt that may be converted into shares under its agreed terms.

The company is also progressing the proposed sale of its remaining 49% interest in Creo Medical SL. Completion is expected during the third quarter, although the expected proceeds were not disclosed in this announcement.

This disposal matters because the directors' assessment of the funding position is conditional upon its completion. Subject to the transaction completing, they believe Creo will have enough cash to fund development through to sustainable cash flow generation and profitability.

That is a positive statement, but the condition should not be overlooked. Until the disposal completes, transaction risk remains. Investors should also remember that the placing issued new equity, creating dilution for existing shareholders, while the convertible instrument may potentially result in further shares being issued depending on its terms.

Clinical adoption continues to build

Creo reported commercial and clinical progress across its product portfolio. Developments included:

• The first use of Speedboat in a UK private hospital.
• Key opinion leader presentations supporting Creo's core products at DDW.
• Novel BEAM procedures using SpydrBlade Flex.
• The completion of 50 clinical cases using MicroBlate Fine.
• MicroBlate Flex exceeding 100 clinical cases earlier in July.

Creo develops minimally invasive electrosurgical devices for endoscopy, including procedures involving the cutting, coagulation and ablation of tissue. In simple terms, its technology is designed to help clinicians treat tissue through less invasive procedures.

Growing case numbers can provide useful evidence of clinician engagement and product adoption. However, this announcement does not disclose how individual products contributed to revenue, the number of active centres, procedure economics or recurring sales per installed system.

That makes the 45% group revenue increase the clearest commercial measure available for the period.

Readers following the company can find further coverage on the Creo Medical Group PLC share page.

What investors should watch next

The update contains several genuine positives. Revenue growth remains strong, costs have fallen and the underlying operating loss is narrowing. Clinical usage is also expanding, and management has maintained its 50% to 60% full-year revenue growth guidance.

The main risks sit around funding and execution. Creo is still loss-making, cash declined during the half and the directors' funding assessment depends on the Creo Medical SL stake disposal completing. The company must also deliver the expected second-half acceleration to meet its full-year growth range.

Creo plans to publish unaudited interim results in September 2026. The most important points to examine will be the detail behind revenue growth, the durability of cost savings, progress on the stake disposal and any updated indication of when sustainable cash generation might be reached.