Vericel lifts 2026 revenue outlook as MACI, burn care expand

Vericel raised its 2026 revenue outlook to $344 million-$346 million after third-quarter revenue rose 26% to $85.4 million, above company guidance, as MACI and a record burn-care quarter lifted the base. Net income climbed 179% to $14.2 million, or $0.27 per diluted share. Adjusted EBITDA rose 48% to $25.2 million.

Those gains support the raised 2026 forecast, but management withheld formal 2027 guidance. Vericel is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company selling advanced cell therapies and regenerative-medicine products in orthopedic and burn care. Its principal orthopedic product, MACI, uses a patient’s own cultured chondrocytes to repair symptomatic knee cartilage defects in adults.

What changed in the raised outlook?

• Full-year revenue: Vericel increased guidance to $344 million-$346 million from $330 million-$340 million. The midpoint rose $10 million and now implies 25% annual growth.
• Product forecasts: Management expects MACI revenue of $290 million-$292 million and burn-care revenue of approximately $54 million.
• Margins: The adjusted EBITDA margin forecast increased to approximately 28% from 27%. Vericel maintained its approximately 75% gross-margin forecast.
• Fourth quarter: CFO Joe Mara expects approximately $102 million in MACI revenue at the guidance midpoint, representing 21% growth. Continued procedure trends into December could provide upside.

Takeaway: The raised forecast depends on a $102 million midpoint MACI plan, with December procedure trends offering potential upside rather than booked revenue.

How broad is MACI growth?

Third-quarter MACI revenue rose 21% to $67.4 million, extending a run of at least 20% growth to a sixth consecutive quarter. Vericel also reported records for biopsies, implants and the number of surgeons performing both procedures.

President and CEO Nick Colangelo said the company carried momentum into the fourth quarter, including “the strongest month for MACI biopsies since the product’s launch in October.”

Expansion territories posted the fastest biopsy growth among territory groups through the first nine months. Management expects implant gains in the fourth quarter and into 2027, but did not quantify them.

MACI Arthro reached a record procedure count and its highest share of total MACI procedures since launch. More than 25% of MACI procedures for condyle defects smaller than four square centimeters used the arthroscopic approach.

Colangelo called patella defects MACI’s highest-volume and highest-growth segment, while activity also increased at other locations. Vericel is developing next-generation instruments to simplify procedures and widen access within the knee, including patella defects.

Takeaway: MACI demand is broadening by surgeon, procedure and territory, but the expected 2027 benefit remains unquantified.

What drove the burn-care record?

Burn-care revenue rose 52% to $18 million, setting a record. Epicel sales increased 23% to a quarterly record $12.7 million, while commercial NexoBrid revenue rose 54% to a record $2.3 million.

Vericel also recognized $3 million in NexoBrid procurement revenue under its agreement with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA. More than 80 centers have ordered NexoBrid to date, and approximately 70 have placed repeat orders, Colangelo said.

He attributed Epicel’s performance partly to cross-selling, increased peer-to-peer activity and other commercial initiatives. He also noted that catastrophic-burn incidence and patients surviving long enough to receive treatment remain outside Vericel’s control.

Vericel expects another $3 million in NexoBrid BARDA procurement revenue in the fourth quarter and about $4 million in the first quarter of 2027. It described opportunities for further procurement later in 2027 without specifying an amount.

Takeaway: Burn care is growing faster than MACI, yet its trajectory still depends partly on uncontrollable injury and survival rates plus future BARDA orders.

What can the cash balance fund?

Vericel generated approximately $18 million in operating cash flow and $16 million in free cash flow during the third quarter. It ended with $236 million in cash and investments and no debt.

The company repurchased approximately 221,000 shares for $8.8 million and retained $191 million under its authorization. Colangelo said the cash position supports both opportunistic share repurchases and potential business-development transactions.

Takeaway: The debt-free cash reserve gives Vericel room for buybacks and deals, although management has identified no transaction pipeline.

What has management guided for 2027?

CFO Joe Mara said Vericel “would likely begin with a more conservative guidance framework” for 2027. He described analyst consensus as a useful starting point for revenue while saying internal expectations were higher; the company issued no formal 2027 guidance.

He expects some further adjusted EBITDA margin expansion. That direction does not establish a margin target, and the release did not provide a revenue range or quantify the expected expansion.

Takeaway: Management expects 2027 earnings power to improve, but its public revenue and margin figures remain incomplete.

Which expansion options remain ahead?

Vericel still targets a potential U.K. launch of MACI in the second half of 2027. The U.K. medicines regulator inspected its new manufacturing facility during the third quarter. Meanwhile, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence accepted MACI for a single technology appraisal.

The company also enrolls patients in the MACI Ankle study and is assessing potential expansion in Canada and Europe. These efforts sit outside formal 2027 revenue guidance, leaving timing and returns uncertain.

Takeaway: The U.K., ankle, Canadian and European options extend the runway, but none yet carries formal revenue guidance.