Sonova HY 2026/27 results: Raising full-year guidance after strong first half

Group Media & Investor Release
Ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR

• First half revenue amounted to CHF 1,834.1 million, up 7.5% in local currencies and 6.7% in Swiss francs, with market share gains driven by Virto R, large accounts and the launch of EON
• Strong Hearing Instruments sales growth, up 9.0% in local currencies and 8.2% in Swiss francs, driven by Wholesale growth of 11.0% and Retail growth of 6.5% in local currencies; Wholesale gained market share year on year for the 11th consecutive quarter
• Core EBIT of CHF 384.0 million, up 22.9% in local currencies and 21.4% in Swiss francs, reflecting strong operating leverage and cost discipline; reported EBIT reached CHF 372.0 million
• EON, Roger On Sphere and Integro launches, retail expansion, broad-based geographical growth and operational transformation demonstrate continued execution of Sonova’s strategic priorities
• Full-year 2026/27 guidance raised: sales growth of 6–8% (previously 5–8%) and core EBIT growth of 10–13% (previously 7–10%), both in local currencies

Sonova Group key figures

Stäfa (Switzerland), 12 November 2026 – Sonova Holding AG (SWX: SOON), the leading provider of innovative hearing solutions, delivered strong results for the first half of its 2026/27 financial year. Group sales reached CHF 1,834.1 million, up 7.5% in local currencies and 6.7% in Swiss francs, with market share gains driven by Virto R, large accounts and the launch of EON. The Hearing Instruments segment delivered broad-based growth, with sales increasing by 9.0% in local currencies and 8.2% in Swiss francs. Growth was driven by higher volumes and positive average selling price development across Wholesale and Retail. Wholesale sales grew by 11.0% in local currencies and 10.0% in Swiss francs, supported by continued market share gains, while Retail sales increased by 6.5% and 6.0%, respectively. Wholesale recorded its 11th consecutive quarter of year-on-year market share gains. Core EBIT rose by 22.9% in local currencies and 21.4% in Swiss francs to CHF 384.0 million, reflecting strong operating leverage and cost discipline, while reported EBIT reached CHF 372.0 million. Successful launches of EON, Roger On Sphere and Integro, continued retail expansion, growth across all regions and progress in the operational transformation program reflect progress across Sonova’s strategic priorities. Building on this strong first-half performance, Sonova is raising its outlook for the 2026/27 financial year and now expects sales to grow by 6–8% and core EBIT by 10–13%, both in local currencies. 

“Our innovation leadership is delivering meaningful advances in hearing performance and experience with EON, Roger On Sphere and Integro. EON is already contributing above our expectations, combining superior acoustics in a smaller device with best-in-class connectivity – its launch across our markets supported growth and market share gains,” says Eric Bernard, CEO of Sonova. 

Executing strategy to drive innovation and growth 
Sonova is turning advanced technology into better hearing experiences in everyday life. Phonak Audéo EON, our new receiver-in-canal hearing aid platform, brings our latest real-time AI into a smaller, lighter design, with best-in-class connectivity and improved wind-noise performance. It is designed to help people understand speech more clearly in challenging environments, with less listening effort, more natural sound and longer battery life. Roger On Sphere, our latest remote microphone, extends speech clarity over distance and in noisy conversations with multiple speakers. And with Integro, our new cochlear implant sound processor, Advanced Bionics brings Phonak AI, improved sound localization and Roger connectivity to cochlear implant recipients. Together, these innovations extend our technology across hearing aids, remote microphones and cochlear implants, helping more people hear with greater clarity, confidence and ease.

Continued market share gains in Wholesale and solid organic growth in Retail are extending Sonova’s reach. In Retail, Sonova continues to expand through targeted bolt-on acquisitions and remains on track with its annual investment ambition of CHF 80–100 million. This disciplined approach is reinforced by core EBIT and ROCE as key measures of profitability and capital returns. Recent investments include Høreservice Danmark, a leading provider of mobile hearing care that complements the existing store network and could provide a model for similar services in other markets, as well as Harbor Audiology, a premium hearing care provider in Washington State that strengthens Sonova’s presence in the Pacific Northwest of the United States.

The ramp-up of EON was supported by continued focus on delivery reliability, quality and regional manufacturing capabilities. The Group also advanced initiatives to simplify customer interaction and improve service. In parallel, programs in sales and operations planning, continuous excellence, value engineering, footprint optimization and automation progressed during the period. Together, these actions strengthen Sonova’s ability to deliver on time, on quality and on cost, while laying the foundations for the CHF 90 million of targeted operational savings and gross margin improvement set out at the March 2026 strategy update.

Continued market share gains in a growing market
Sonova continued to gain market share in the first half of 2026/27. Based on available data for tracked markets and Sonova’s estimates, the global hearing aid market grew by around 5% during the period, with growth strengthening in the second quarter. Reflecting this development, Sonova now assumes full-year market growth of 3–5%, compared with 2–4% previously.

Financial performance
On 23 March 2026, following a strategic portfolio review, Sonova announced its intention to divest its Consumer Hearing business. The divestment process remains on track, with completion expected during the 2026/27 financial year. As of 30 September 2026, the business continues to meet the criteria for classification as held for sale and presentation as discontinued operations. Comparative figures for the six-month period ended 30 September 2025 have been restated accordingly. Unless otherwise stated, figures and growth rates refer to continuing operations.

Strong growth – Sustaining market share gains
Sonova Group sales reached CHF 1,834.1 million in the first half of financial year 2026/27, up 7.5% in local currencies and 6.7% in Swiss francs. Growth was driven by strong performance in the Hearing Instruments segment, with sustained market share gains in Wholesale and solid organic growth in Retail. Double-digit percent growth in Asia Pacific was complemented by strong broad-based growth across North America, EMEA and LATAM. Growth was moderated by the Cochlear Implants segment, as expected, where continued market pressure in China and the US weighed on performance. Exchange-rate movements reduced reported sales by CHF 13.7 million and growth in Swiss francs by 0.8 percentage points.

Sales by regions

Broad-based growth across all regions
Sales in EMEA and LATAM increased by 6.8% in local currencies and 6.4% in Swiss francs to CHF 992.9 million. Growth was broad based and supported by sustained momentum in both Wholesale and Retail. Germany was the largest contributor, complemented by good growth across other key geographies and in the distributor business. Growth in the region benefited from continued demand for the latest product platforms in Wholesale and significant organic growth in Retail.

Sales in North America increased by 7.5% in local currencies and 5.8% in Swiss francs to CHF 654.3 million. Growth was driven primarily by low double-digit percentage growth in Wholesale, supported by share gains from the latest innovations and expanded commercial relationships with major customers. Sales also benefited from growth in deliveries to the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), where Sonova continues to hold a leading position. Retail grew slightly in both the United States and Canada, while sales in Cochlear Implants were lower.

Sales in Asia Pacific increased by 11.4% in local currencies and 11.9% in Swiss francs to CHF 186.9 million. Asia Pacific delivered mid-teens percentage growth in Hearing Instruments, led by Australia, China and Japan. Very strong growth in Japan benefited from continued momentum for the latest product platforms, including Virto R. Regional growth was held back by Cochlear Implants in China following the introduction of volume-based procurement (VBP).

Strong improvement in profitability
In the first half of financial year 2026/27, restructuring costs amounted to CHF 6.7 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF 7.9 million), transaction and integration costs related to acquisitions amounted to CHF 0.4 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF 0.3 million), and an additional charge of CHF 5.0 million was recognized following the reassessment of existing product liability provisions for a legacy Cochlear Implants product. The prior-year period included CHF 28.2 million of legal costs.

Core figures and growth rates include acquisition-related amortization and exclude the special items described above. For more details, please refer to the table “Reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures” in the “Financial Information 1HY 2026/27” document.

Reported gross profit amounted to CHF 1,364.9 million. Core gross profit was CHF 1,369.7 million, up 11.0% in local currencies and 10.2% in Swiss francs. The development was supported by strong volume growth and positive average selling price (ASP) development in both the Wholesale and Retail businesses. Gross profit growth was driven by higher sales, supported by disciplined execution and the absence of temporary costs incurred in the prior year related to the ramp-up and regionalization of Sonova’s manufacturing and logistics footprint. The reported gross profit margin reached 74.4%, compared with 72.2% in the prior-year period.

Reported operating expenses were CHF 992.9 million, compared with CHF 960.3 million in the prior-year period. Core operating expenses were CHF 985.7 million, an increase of 6.9% in local currencies and 6.3% in Swiss francs. Operating expenses grew slightly less than sales in local currencies, reflecting disciplined cost management, partly offset by negative operating leverage in Cochlear Implants.

Core research and development expenses amounted to CHF 107.4 million, up 4.2% in local currencies and 3.9% in Swiss francs. The Group continued to invest in innovation, supporting the launches of EON, Roger On Sphere and Integro and the continued development of Sonova’s technology platforms.

Core sales and marketing expenses increased by 7.8% in local currencies and 7.3% in Swiss francs to CHF 702.0 million, reflecting continued investment in Retail lead generation and coordinated product launches. Core general and administration expenses increased by 4.9% in local currencies and 4.7% in Swiss francs to CHF 177.3 million, reflecting continued cost discipline. Core other income amounted to CHF 1.0 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF -0.2 million).

Core operating profit (EBIT) rose by 22.9% in local currencies and 21.4% in Swiss francs to CHF 384.0 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF 316.4 million). The core EBIT margin reached 20.9%, compared with 18.4% in the prior-year period. The improvement reflects strong operating leverage from higher sales, positive ASP development and disciplined cost management, partly offset by the weaker performance of the Cochlear Implants segment and continued investment in innovation, digitalization and operations.

Reported operating profit (EBIT) amounted to CHF 372.0 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF 279.9 million), increasing by 34.6% in local currencies and 32.9% in Swiss francs. Net financial expenses, including the result from associates and joint ventures, amounted to CHF 0.8 million compared with CHF 29.1 million in the prior-year period. This was supported by gains from better foreign exchange results and mark-to-market gains on financial investments. Income taxes were CHF 62.7 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF 40.8 million). Basic earnings per share from continuing operations reached CHF 5.18, increasing by 52.0% in local currencies and 49.6% in Swiss francs. Core earnings per share from continuing operations rose by 37.8% in local currencies and 35.6% in Swiss francs to CHF 5.37, compared with CHF 3.96 in the prior-year period.

The Consumer Hearing business, reported as discontinued operations, generated sales of CHF 114.8 million (1HY 2025/26: CHF 96.8 million). The loss after taxes from discontinued operations was CHF 56.8 million, including a CHF 68.3 million loss recognized on measurement to fair value less costs to sell and the related CHF 12.1 million income tax effect. At the March 2026 strategy update, Sonova announced its intention to divest the business, and the process remains on track. Basic earnings per share including discontinued operations rose by 33.5% in Swiss francs to CHF 4.22, compared with CHF 3.16 in the prior-year period.

Hearing Instruments segment – Strong growth and sustained market share gains
Sales in the Hearing Instruments segment reached CHF 1,716.7 million, up 9.0% in local currencies and 8.2% in Swiss francs. Organic growth was 8.4% while acquisitions contributed CHF 9.0 million, reflecting 0.6 percentage points of growth.