A successful end to financial year 2023/2024 has seen Heidelberg meet its targets. As planned, sales remained stable at around €2.4 bn (previous year: €2.435 bn). An adjusted EBITDA margin of 7.2% was also maintained.
Following its showing at drupa, the company is confident about the prospects for financial year 2024/2025. The high level of interest in Heidelberg innovations from customers worldwide has led incoming orders to recover further still at the start of the new financial year. What’s more, the industrial inkjet printing collaboration with Canon that was announced in Düsseldorf is set to open up new growth areas. Overall, despite economic policy uncertainties, Heidelberg is expecting sales and the EBITDA margin for financial year 2024/2025 to match the previous year’s level.
“We have taken a big step toward our goal of achieving sustainable profitability at Heidelberg. Even in economically uncertain times, we have remained resolutely on track, which gives us confidence,” says Ludwin Monz, CEO. “Moving forward, we are looking to open up further growth markets thanks to our collaboration with Canon in the industrial inkjet printing sector.”
Since financial year 2023/2024, when it accounted for 52% of sales, the Packaging Solutions segment has been the largest area of business at Heidelberg. Its sales were roughly 7% up on the previous year at around €1.2 bn.
Customers from all over the world showed great interest in the company’s trade fair stand and invested in the innovations presented. The large number of orders from drupa led to a recovery in incoming orders at Heidelberg at the start of the new 2024/2025 financial year, which is expected to reach around €650m in the first quarter of 2024/2025. Due to better utilization of production capacities, short-time work at the German sites will end as early as June 2024.
Assuming the global economy does not see weaker growth than predicted by the relevant institutions, Heidelberg is expecting sales in financial year 2024/2025 to match the previous year’s figure 2023/2024 (€2.4 bn). A further supposition in this context is that there will be no substantial changes in key exchange rates for the company’s business activities. The adjusted EBITDA margin is also expected to remain at the previous year’s level 2023/2024 (7.2%).
