PETALING JAYA: QES Group Bhd
’s outlook for the financial year 2026 (FY26) remains constructive, supported by resilient order book visibility amid the ongoing semiconductor upcycle and expanding manufacturing portfolio, says RHB Research.
Following a recent meeting, the research house said the management of the semiconductor test equipment group expects stronger earnings from the second quarter of financial year 2026 (2Q26), driven by the ramp-up in the medical technology (MedTech) and resilient value engineering divisions’ performance.
“Further upside could stem from the ongoing China collaboration initiatives that provide an additional growth avenue from a different market segment over the medium term,” RHB Research said in a report yesterday.
As at end-May 2026, QES’ outstanding order book remained resilient at RM121mil (end-April: RM122mil), comprising RM86mil and RM35mil under the value engineering and manufacturing divisions, respectively.
Despite billing around 45% of the end-April order book by end-June, RHB Research noted that ongoing order replenishment kept the group’s order book broadly stable, with about 90% of the outstanding order book expected to be delivered within FY26.
Separately, QES recently secured its largest automated optical inspection system order worth around RM14mil from India, which is expected to be fully delivered within FY26.
As of end-June, QES had also secured cumulative MedTech orders of about RM21.5mil.
Meanwhile, outstanding medtech orders stood at about RM9mil (around 26% of the manufacturing order book).
The MedTech operation is currently utilising about 90% of the space allocated to MedTech at Plant A at Batu Kawan, Penang.
RHB Research also highlighted that QES is actively engaging several multinational MedTech companies, which should support further order growth and underpin the manufacturing division’s return to breakeven.
Meanwhile, QES is constructing a Class 1000 cleanroom at its Batu Kawan facility, targeted for completion by 4Q26, to support its first manufacturing collaboration with a China-based partner.
The project is expected to generate up to RM80mil upon full ramp-up.
RHB Research has raised the group’s FY26, FY27 and FY28 earnings forecasts by 2%, 12% and 11%, mainly to reflect stronger revenue assumptions underpinned by resilient order book visibility and the MedTech-led manufacturing recovery.
It maintained a “buy” call on QES with a revised target price of 69 sen per share.
