According to preliminary unaudited figures, Heidelberg has exceeded its own forecast in terms of net sales and operating margin for the financial year 2020/2021 (April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021).
Thanks to a strong final quarter, sales of around €1.913 bn were slightly above the forecast range of €1.85-1.9 bn. Due to rising demand particularly in China, parts of Europe and in the final quarter, also in the US, incoming orders rose to €2 bn by the end of the financial year. In the fourth quarter alone, the order intake improved significantly to €579m, (Q4 19/20 = €462m). The order backlog increased to €636m, providing a favourable start for the new financial year.
“With a strong final spurt, we have been able to continue our recovery in business volume since the Corona-induced low in the summer,” said Rainer Hundsdörfer, Heidelberg’s CEO. “The upturn in the regions makes us confident that we will be able to continue our upward trend in net sales and margin in the future.”
As a result of the positive effects realised under the transformation program and the higher sales volume in the final quarter, the operating return exceeded the company’s own forecast. At €146m, EBITDA excluding restructuring result in financial year 2020/2021 was significantly higher than in the previous year (€102m). The EBITDA margin of around 7.6% exceeded the company’s own forecast of around 7%, even though the expected income from the sale of land at the Wiesloch site will only be recognised in the new financial year.
The company will publish its financial statements and annual report for financial year 2020/2021 on June 9, 2021.
