Sales below the prior-year period with weaker market momentum, as expected
Bucher Industries AG / Key word(s): Quarterly / Interim Statement
Sales below the prior-year period with weaker market momentum, as expected
25.04.2024 / 06:00 CET/CEST
--------------------
As expected, Bucher Industries' markets weakened over the course of the first quarter of 2024 in line with the general economic slowdown. The agricultural machinery market in particular was severely impacted by economic and political uncertainties. Order intake and sales fell below the prior-year period.
Group
January – March
Change
Full year
CHF million
2024
2023
%
%1)
%2)
2023
Order intake
683
854
-20.0
-16.0
-16.1
3’170
Net sales
853
970
-12.1
-7.7
-7.8
3’575
Order book
1’393
1’933
-28.0
-24.3
-24.3
1’600
Average number of FTEs
14’644
14’886
-1.6
-1.7
14’795
1) Adjusted for currency effects
2) Adjusted for currency and acquisition effects
Demand for Bucher Industries' products and services declined over the course of the first quarter of 2024 in line with the general economic slowdown. The economic and political uncertainties affected the agricultural machinery market in particular. Order intake fell below the prior-year period overall, although the divisions were affected to varying degrees. While order intake weakened significantly at Kuhn Group and Bucher Hydraulics, it was only slightly below the prior-year period at Bucher Municipal, Bucher Emhart Glass and Bucher Specials. Group sales fell significantly below the high level of the prior-year period. Negative currency effects of four percentage points also contributed to the decline. Production capacity was less utilised and was adjusted to the lower volumes on a case-by-case basis. The order book remained high with a range of five months.
Kuhn Group
January – March
Change
Full year
CHF million
2024
2023
%
%1)
2023
Order intake
194
297
-34.7
-31.6
1’121
Net sales
357
440
-18.9
-14.9
1’422
Order book
490
855
-42.7
-39.4
670
Average number of FTEs
5’840
6’205
-5.9
5’991
1) Adjusted for currency effects
Decline in demand Demand for agricultural machinery continued to decline during the reporting period. Farmers remained reluctant to invest because prices for agricultural commodities had fallen, interest rates were high, and fewer subsidies were available. In addition, inventories of agricultural machinery remained high in the dealer network, which weakened demand in all regions. Order intake remained especially low in Brazil, and in Europe the uncertain political climate had a negative impact and wet weather conditions delayed seeding. North America also showed signs of a slowdown. Kuhn Group's sales fell significantly compared to the strong prior-year period. The order book had a range of more than four months.
Bucher Municipal
January – March
Change
Full year
CHF million
2024
2023
%
%1)
%2)
2023
Order intake
149
159
-6.2
-1.6
-2.3
576
Net sales
139
129
7.1
12.7
11.9
573
Order book
315
340
-7.4
-2.6
-2.6
311
Average number of FTEs
2’505
2’490
0.6
-0.1
2’545
1) Adjusted for currency effects
2) Adjusted for currency and acquisition effects
Increase in sales Demand remained stable overall at Bucher Municipal. The truck-mounted sweeper and sewer cleaning vehicle segments benefited from the improved delivery capacity for chassis. The compact sweeper business declined, partly due to a reduction in subsidies for electrified vehicles in Europe. Orders for refuse collection vehicles fell significantly compared to the high level of the prior-year period but remained stable for winter maintenance equipment. The maintenance services and spare parts business continued to develop satisfactorily. Overall, order intake fell slightly compared to the high level of the prior-year period, while sales increased. The order book had a range of more than six months.
Bucher Hydraulics
January – March
Change
Full year
CHF million
2024
2023
%
%1)
2023
Order intake
147
194
-24.2
-20.4
670
Net sales
182
206
-11.6
-7.5
744
Order book
190
298
-36.3
-33.3
230
Average number of FTEs
3’062
2’996
2.2
3’042
1) Adjusted for currency effects
Decline in demand Demand fell markedly in the hydraulics markets during the reporting period, and Bucher Hydraulics' order intake declined significantly compared with the strong prior-year period. This was largely due to the weak market cycle in agricultural machinery, although the decline in demand for construction machinery was also an important factor. The materials handling business was more stable. The mobile electric drive technology solutions business generally had shorter order and delivery times, because electronic components were more readily available. The regions were affected differently by the decline in demand, with the slowdown in market momentum being particularly noticeable in Europe. The division's sales declined significantly. The order book had a range of over three months.
Bucher Emhart Glass
January – March
Change
Full year
CHF million
2024
2023
%
%1)
2023
Order intake
113
124
-9.2
-4.1
520
Net sales
124
133
-6.2
-0.8
524
Order book
283
306
-7.5
-2.7
302
Average number of FTEs
1’662
1’640
1.3
1’655
1) Adjusted for currency effects
Slowdown in market momentum Demand for glass forming and inspection machinery fell slightly compared to the very strong prior-year period but improved again compared to the low level of the previous quarter. Bucher Emhart Glass's order intake fell overall but was still at a high level. Europe was particularly affected by the downturn, with the other regions remaining stable. The division's capacity utilisation remained very high due to its strong order book. However, its sales were slightly lower than in the prior-year period, mainly due to currency effects. The order book had a range of almost seven months.
Bucher Specials
January – March
Change
Full year
CHF million
2024
2023
%1)
%1)
2023
Order intake
94
100
-5.9
-1.2
369
Net sales
72
85
-14.8
-10.3
398
Order book
142
168
-15.6
-13.1
122
Average number of FTEs
1’509
1’495
0.9
1’500
1) Adjusted for currency effects
2) Adjusted for currency and acquisition effects
Varying market developments Bucher Specials' markets were subject to varying developments during the reporting period. Demand remained stable at Bucher Vaslin, while Bucher Unipektin's business developed positively. Bucher Landtechnik and Bucher Automation both reported weakening business performances. Order intake was slightly lower overall than in the prior-year period, due to negative currency effects. Sales declined significantly. The order book had a range of more than four months.
Outlook for 2024
The Group anticipates that demand will continue to soften slightly in 2024 against an environment increasingly characterised by uncertainties. Kuhn Group expects sales to decrease and the operating profit margin to be lower. Bucher Municipal forecasts sales in line with prior-year figures. The operating profit margin is likely to increase. Due to weakening market momentum, Bucher Hydraulics expects both sales and the operating profit margin to decline slightly. Bucher Emhart Glass anticipates slightly weaker sales compared with the very high sales of 2023. Accordingly, the operating profit margin is expected to be somewhat lower than in 2023. Bucher Specials assumes its sales and the operating profit margin will be on a par with the previous year. The Group expects a slight decline in sales as a result of the slowdown in business momentum for 2024. Due to the lower capacity utilisation as well as rising employment costs, the operating profit margin is also expected to decline, but still remaining in the double digits. Accordingly, the Group’s profit for the year is expected to be lower than the high level recorded in the previous year.
Contact for investors and financial analysts
Jin Wiederkehr, Investor Relations
T +41 58 750 15 50
ir@bucherindustries.com
Contact for media
Saskia Rusch, Head of Group Communications
T +41 58 750 15 40
media@bucherindustries.com
*_________*
*Simply great machines*
Bucher Industries is a global technology group with leading market positions in speciality areas of mechanical and vehicle engineering. The company’s operations include agricultural machinery, municipal vehicles, hydraulic and electronic components as well as electrohydraulic systems, manufacturing equipment for the glass container industry, equipment for processing beverages and automation solutions. The company’s shares are traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX: BUCN). Further information is available at bucherindustries.com.
Additional performance measures: Internally and externally Bucher Industries uses key figures that are not defined by Swiss GAAP FER. The composition and calculation of the individual performance measures are set out here: bucherindustries.com/en/additional-performance-measures.News Source: Bucher Industries AG
--------------------
End of Media Release --------------------
Language: English
Company: Bucher Industries AG
Murzlenstrasse 80
8166 Niederweningen
Switzerland
Phone: +41 58 750 15 00
E-mail: info@bucherindustries.com
Internet: www.bucherindustries.com
ISIN: CH0002432174
Listed: SIX Swiss Exchange
EQS News ID: 1888897
End of News EQS News Service