Mesa Laboratories (MLAB) Jefferies London Healthcare Conference 2025 summary

Biopharmaceutical development and clinical genomics performance

• Biopharmaceutical development saw 17% quarterly growth, though full-year growth was 6.4% due to tariff-related shipment delays; momentum is expected to return in the second half of the year.

• Clinical trial starts, a key indicator, remained flat; double-digit growth occurred in North America and Europe, but China experienced a 60% decline, impacting overall results.

• Underlying growth rates are expected to improve as China headwinds subside.

• Advances in clinical genomics include expanded marker panels and updated guidelines, driving market adoption and future-proofing offerings.

• Increased sophistication in testing and guideline changes are supporting continued share gains and adoption.

Calibration solutions and market share

• Calibration solutions achieved over 10% growth, driven mainly by volume increases in renal and biologics monitoring products.

• Pricing remained steady despite inflation, with only minor creative adjustments.

• Market share gains were noted in both North America and internationally, especially in dialysis machine validation.

• Consumables did not experience the same pricing power as instrumentation during supply chain disruptions.

Biopharmaceutical development demand and margin dynamics

• Demand in biopharmaceutical development is closely tied to clinical trials, with steady share gains over manual and semi-automated tests.

• Peptide segment grew over 40% in the first half but carries lower margins; a shift back to protein analytics is expected to improve gross margins from high 50s to low 60s in the second half.

• Increased clinical trial activity is anticipated to support long-term growth.