HERMLE continues to sense an uncertain environment in 2025

HERMLE continues to sense an uncertain environment in 2025
Incoming orders decline by 7% to €193.3 million by the end of May
Group turnover down 6% to €178.6 million
International business grows thanks to pull-forward effects in the USA
Forecast for the year as a whole unchanged
Shareholders’ meeting approves dividend of €11.05 per preference share

 

The business operations of Maschinenfabrik Berthold HERMLE AG continued to be affected by extremely uncertain conditions in the first five months of 2025. As reported by the Executive Board at today's shareholders' meeting, incoming orders at the Swabian machine tool and automation specialist declined by around 7% year-on-year to €193.3 million (previous year: €208.2 million) across the Group. According to the German Machine Tool Builders' Association (VDW), incoming orders in the German machine tool industry fell by 7% overall in the first five months of the year and by 11% in the cutting machine tool sector relevant to HERMLE. 

The HERMLE Executive Board attributed the weak demand, which is now being felt almost worldwide, primarily to the constantly changing customs and trade policies and the overall unclear foreign policy of the USA. In Germany, willingness to invest is additionally hampered by the country's heavy dependence on exports and structural upheaval in the automotive industry. As a result, new orders received by HERMLE in Germany fell by approximately 29% to €52.9 million (previous year: €74.2 million), while new orders from abroad actually increased by around 5% to €140.4 million (previous year: €134.0 million). The Group's order backlog amounted to €113.4 million at the end of May 2025, compared with €149.6 million on the same date last year and €98.7 million at the end of 2024. 

Group turnover, which declined by approximately 6% to €178.6 million between January and May 2025 (previous year: €189.1 million), also showed strong regional differences: Domestic turnover fell by around 29% to €47.5 million (previous year: €67.1 million), whereas international sales rose by approximately 7% to €131.1 million (previous year: €122.0 million). According to HERMLE, one of the reasons for this is the pull-forward effect of customers from the USA in anticipation of the announced tariff increases. In addition, the increasing service revenue continued to have a stabilising effect. This increased continuously at HERMLE thanks to the general growth in the number of machines installed at customer sites and the increasing proportion of complex automation solutions. 

As expected, HERMLE's operating profit declined disproportionately to turnover in the first five months of 2025. The main reason for this is lower capacity utilisation which could only be partially offset by the reduction in flexitime accounts, a measure which began at the end of 2024 and has since been accelerated, and by the use of short-time working. Added to this are significantly intensified competition and the ongoing burdens caused by excessive bureaucracy.