- Q3 sales at previous year's level and adjusted EBITDA margin improves significantly to 9.2 percent
- Incoming orders up 8.3 percent for Q3 and 7.7 percent after nine months compared with previous year
- High order backlog points to strong final quarter
- Full-year forecast confirmed, adjusted EBITDA margin to rise to up to around 8 percent in FY 2025/2026
- Packaging remains a growth driver
- Growth strategy promises sales potential of over € 300 million in medium term
HEIDELBERG, GERMANY – Newsaktuell – 12 February 2025 - At Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (HEIDELBERG), key figures for the first nine months of financial year 2024/2025 (April 1 to December 31, 2024) and the third quarter (October 1 to December 31, 2024) were in line with the expected developments communicated by the company. Especially in terms of the key operating results, the
third quarter of the current financial year brought significant improvements compared with the first half-year and also with the equivalent quarter of the previous year. The
adjusted EBITDA margin for the third quarter was 9.2 percent (equivalent quarter of previous year: 5.7 percent), with high capacity utilization and intensified cost-cutting measures having a particularly positive impact.
Sales to date during financial year 2024/2025 have increased from quarter to quarter. The figure of € 594 million for the third quarter matched the equivalent quarter of the previous year (€ 594 million). In the third quarter,
incoming orders were up by some 8.3 percent at € 550 million (equivalent quarter of previous year: € 508 million). This is much better than the current developments in the mechanical and plant engineering sector as a whole. The biggest contributions were made by the EMEA region (+ 16 percent) and the Packaging Solutions segment (+ 15 percent). The high
order backlog of € 903 million paves the way for a very strong final quarter. "We have succeeded in continuously improving our sales and operating result quarter by quarter in a difficult economic environment. Thanks to our high order backlog, we can confirm that we will achieve our targets for the year" said Jürgen Otto, CEO of HEIDELBERG. "And we will drive down costs further still in the coming year by implementing our plan for the future and boosting efficiency. This cost discipline will have a positive effect on our profitability, which should improve further in the next financial year." Based on strong order levels, the company anticipates a clear increase in sales in the fourth quarter of the current financial year in particular.
Adjusted EBITDA after nine months amounted to € 86 million (adjusted figure for equivalent period of previous year: € 135 million), and the adjusted EBITDA margin was 5.7 percent (equivalent period of previous year: 8.0 percent). The main reasons for this were the low sales volume in the first quarter and the associated high losses. Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter of the current financial year increased to € 55 million, compared with € 34 million in the equivalent quarter of the previous year. The adjusted EBITDA margin improved significantly, from 5.7 percent to 9.2 percent. In the third quarter, net provisions amounting to € 29 million were established for the planned measures to reduce labor costs and were adjusted. Including this item,
EBITDA in Q3 totaled € 26 million (previous year: € 34 million). Establishing these provisions resulted in a lower
net result after taxes of € -7 million in the third quarter (equivalent quarter of previous year: € 1 million) and € -42 million after nine months (equivalent period of previous year: € 34 million). The
free cash flow after nine months was, as anticipated, € -97 million (equivalent period of previous year: € -54 million). In the third quarter, it improved significantly compared with the previous year, creeping into positive figures at € 4 million (equivalent quarter of previous year: € -26 million). "Our successful management of net working capital played a key role in achieving a positive free cash flow despite high inventories due to the order situation," said HEIDELBERG CFO Tania von der Goltz. "The big improvements we are expecting in the results for the final quarter and the reduction of inventories by the end of the financial year will have a positive impact on the free cash flow," she added.
Packaging segment remains a growth driver Incoming orders in the
Packaging segment increased significantly – by around 11 percent to € 959 million for the first three quarters and by some 15 percent in the third quarter. In terms of megatrends, the packaging market is first and foremost seeing a growing demand for packaging that is both sustainable and of a high quality. This is where the positioning of HEIDELBERG as a systems integrator and total...
