Investing.com — Barclays upgraded to “overweight” from “equal weight” and downgraded to “underweight” from “equal weight” rating, setting price targets of CHF 343 and €19 respectively, as the brokerage signaled a clear preference for device manufacturers over drug containment solution players in Europe’s injectable drug packaging market.
The DCS and devices market was worth €8.8 billion in 2025 and is forecast to grow at a 9% compound annual rate through 2030, with auto-injectors, a €1.3 billion segment, projected to grow 18% and pre-filled syringes at 8% over the same period.
Barclays analysts, who met with the Ypsomed CFO at the company’s Burgdorf, Switzerland facility and spoke with Alexandre Conroy, a former Becton Dickinson executive vice president, said device players benefit from higher barriers to switching versus glass containment peers.
In the U.S., drugs and devices are approved as a combination product, typically with a single device on the FDA master file, giving device makers stronger contractual terms, pricing power and revenue visibility.
Ypsomed, ranked #1 in pen injectors and #2 in auto-injectors with roughly 20% share of a €1.3 billion market led by SHL Medical at 60%, is forecast by Barclays to grow top-line 16% and EBIT 14% in its Ypsomed Delivery Solutions unit, excluding Sanofi, between FY26 and FY30.
Barclays sits 2-3% ahead of Bloomberg consensus EBIT estimates through 2030. More than 90% of Ypsomed’s contracts are CHF-denominated and include inflation adjusters.
The CFO told analysts during the meeting that key cost components such as plastic, labour, and energy are contractually indexed, helping safeguard margins.
CagriSema, Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1/amylin combination being manufactured by Ypsomed, contributed 300 basis points of the brokerage’s 16% growth forecast and 200 basis points of EBIT growth.
Barclays said it sees a 6% downside to its 2030 EBIT estimate if CagriSema is not launched, widening to 11% in a worst-case scenario where capacity is built but volumes fall short, though this would still be within Ypsomed’s CHF 280 million to CHF 340 million EBIT guidance range.
Barclays downgraded Gerresheimer, citing concerns over its structural positioning, an accounting probe by BaFin and elevated leverage of 4.8 times following its late-2024 acquisition of Bormioli for €800 million.
The broker noted the stock trades at 8.9 times its 2026 price-to-earnings, the lowest in its coverage, and that less than 10% of revenue is derived from higher-value segments such as pre-filled syringes and ready-to-fill products.
It estimates a planned divestment of Centor and Moulded Glass could raise around €1.2 billion and cut leverage to 3.3 times, while a potential rights issue would dilute adjusted earnings per share by about 32%.
Barclays added it is 4% to 8% below consensus EBITDA estimates for 2027–2028 and 9% to 10% below on adjusted EPS.
was maintained at “equal weight”, with Barclays raising its price target to €16 from €15 euros.
The broker said the company, a leading supplier in vials and polymer pre-filled syringes and third in glass pre-filled syringes, is expected to deliver revenue growth of about 6% annually through 2030, at the lower end of its 6% to 8% guidance range.
It also flagged risks to revenue visibility after guidance resets over the past two years tied to lower volumes from two large customers in glass and polymer pre-filled syringes.