Twist Bioscience Q3 2026: Revenue Rises, Gross Margin Expands, and EBITDA Breakeven Moves Within Reach

Quarterly results at a glance

• Revenue: $118.4 million for the third quarter of fiscal 2026, up > 23% year over year from $96.1 million in 3QFY25.
• Gross margin: 52.8% in 3QFY26, up 120 basis points sequentially from 2QFY26’s 51.6%.
• DSPS (DNA Synthesis and Protein Solutions) revenue: $56.6 million, up 39% YoY from $40.8m, and up 6% sequentially from 2QFY26’s $53.3m.
• NGS Applications revenue: $61.8 million, up 12% YoY from $55.3m, and up 8% sequentially from 2QFY26.
• Cost of revenues: $55.9 million for 3QFY26, versus $44.8m in the prior-year period.
• R&D: $18.0 million, roughly flat YoY.
• Management reaffirmed Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA and signaled an expected breakeven EBITDA in Q4 FY26.

Segment momentum and margin dynamics

The DSPS segment led the charge with a 39% YoY rise in revenue and a healthy sequential uptick, underscoring that the company’s core synthetic biology stack remains durable as a growth engine. NGS Applications posted a robust 12% YoY gain and an 8% sequential advance, illustrating continued demand for sequencing-enabled product lines. Combined, these trends contributed to a gross margin that crept above the halfway mark and, importantly, set Twist up for better operating leverage as the year progresses.

Guidance, profitability, and the EBITDA arc

Twist raised its full-year revenue forecast to $456-$457 million, a midpoint lift of about $12 million. The driver of this revision is a persistent demand signal across DSPS and NGS, plus the confidence to push the company toward an Adjusted EBITDA breakeven target in Q4 FY26. In investor-speak, this is a milestone Twist is twisting toward with a helix-like resolve—the kind of progress that makes the non-GAAP EBITDA line a more persuasive narrative than a bare top-line number.

The company continues to emphasize non-GAAP information as its primary profitability metric, which means observers will be listening for how the cost structure evolves as revenue scales. R&D remains a meaningful investment at $18.0 million in the quarter, a reminder that growth comes with a willingness to fund future product and platform improvements even as the EBITDA path tightens.

For those tracking EPS and its EPS consensus, Twist’s release does not publish GAAP EPS; instead, it flags adjusted profitability and the trajectory toward breakeven. That dynamic invites a question: will an earnings surprise emerge if Street models catch up to the revised revenue forecast and the ramp in gross margin? The answer will hinge on whether operating expenses stay in check and whether the top-line momentum translates into cash flow in the next few quarters.

What this could mean for Twist and peers

Twist’s Q3 results read like a blueprint for a biotech supplier aiming to scale without sacrificing margin. The dual engine of DSPS and NGS is firing, gross margins are improving, and the year-end EBITDA target is no longer merely aspirational—it's a plan with a firm timetable. For peers in the gene synthesis and sequencing-adjacent space, Twist’s progress emphasizes the value of a diversified product set and targeted cost discipline as the company moves from growth-to-margin expansion.

As a market observer, one might expect the sector to respond by reassessing EBITDA expectations and the sensitivity of stock multiples to revenue cadence rather than to single-quarter beats. Analysts will likely focus on how DSPS and NGS mix shifts influence gross margin, how R&D intensity evolves as Twist tunes its pipeline, and whether the company can sustain the revenue forecast while driving toward EBITDA breakeven. In short: the next few quarters will test the sustainability of top-line gains against the cost structure twist has yet to fully unwind.

Bottom line for TWST investors: the company is moving toward profitability on the back of real volume growth, and the updated revenue forecast suggests the market should start pricing the path to adj EBITDA breakeven into the stock. The prudent takeaway is to watch for signs of EPS normalization and any earnings surprise that could validate the revised revenue trajectory and the non-GAAP profitability story.