As expected, HERMLE reports downturns in Q1 2025
As expected, HERMLE reports downturns in Q1 2025
Incoming orders fell 5.3% to €120.3 million
Group turnover of €97.2 million is 8.8% below the previous year
Slight international growth but significant domestic slowdown
Forecast for the year as a whole unchanged
Business at Maschinenfabrik Berthold HERMLE AG declined as expected during the first quarter of 2025 due to the sluggish machine tool industry. Incoming orders at the Swabian machine tool and automation specialist fell throughout the Group by 5.3% to €120.3 million compared to the corresponding period in the previous year (previous year: €127.0 million). This was entirely attributable to weak domestic demand that saw new orders in Germany during the reporting period fall sharply by 26.9% to €31.6 million (previous year: €43.2 million). By contrast, incoming orders from international customers rose by 5.8% to €88.7 million (previous year: €83.8 million). This demonstrated yet again the success of HERMLE’s systematic internationalisation strategy. The order backlog across the Group as of 31 March 2025 came to €121.8 million compared to €150.8 million on the same date in 2024 and €98.7 million at the end of 2024.
HERMLE also recorded a slight increase in Group turnover internationally: the business volume generated outside Germany from January to March 2025 increased by 2.6% to €69.9 million (previous year: €68.1 million). This contrasts with a sharp fall in domestic sales of 29.1% to €27.3 million (previous year: €38.5 million). The export ratio increased from 63.9% to 71.9%. Overall, Group turnover fell by 8.8% to €97.2 million (previous year: €106.6 million). As expected, the associated reduction in capacity utilisation in the first quarter of 2025 led to a disproportionately high drop in earnings. HERMLE is addressing this by progressively reducing flexible working-time accounts and introducing short-time work across many parts of the business. At the end of March, HERMLE employed 1,605 people throughout the Group, compared to 1,521 on the same date in the previous year and 1,603 at the end of 2024.
Regardless of the current challenging economic environment and to prepare itself for the sustained high demand for automation solutions and machining centres expected in the long term, HERMLE advanced its comprehensive programme of investment in the reporting period to develop its locations. The focus here was on the construction of a new application centre at the company headquarters in Gosheim. However, the investment volume during the first quarter of 2025 was lower than in the same period in the previous year. The HERMLE Group’s financial and asset position remained very solid thanks to sound financial planning, and an equity ratio of over 70% was reported at the end of March 2025.
Since the negative factors arising from sluggish economic conditions, geopolitical conflicts, as well as tariff and trade disputes, persist, and there are currently no signs of improvement in the environment, the forecast for 2025 as a whole remains unchanged: HERMLE expects a loss in turnover between just below 10% and 25% and a disproportionate decline in earnings of 40% to 90%.
Press contact: Redaktionsbüro tik GmbH, Gabriele Rechinger,
T 0911 988 170 72, E-Mail: info@tik-online.de
Imagematerial: Maschinenfabrik Berthold HERMLE AG, Marketing departure , E-Mail: marketing@hermle.de
78559Gosheim
