DÜSSELDORF (dpa-AFX) - Plant manufacturer Gea has exceeded its profit target in 2022 thanks to good business in almost all areas. Adjusted for group restructuring costs, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (adjusted Ebitda) rose 14 percent to 712 million euros, the company announced in Düsseldorf on Tuesday. For the new year, CEO Stefan Klebert is targeting earnings of between 730 and 790 million euros. The news was well received on the stock market.

In a subdued environment, the Gea share gained at times more than two percent in the morning to its highest level in just over a year. The share was not quite able to maintain this level, but with a gain of around one percent was still among the top performers in the MDax. With the price gain following the figures and outlook, the share extended its recent gains - since the interim low at the end of September 2022, the stock market value has increased by around 36 percent to 7.3 billion euros.

Traders praised the figures. Gea not only exceeded its own profit forecast, but also the average expectations of analysts. The board's target for the new year is also surprisingly high: Industry experts had on average only an adjusted operating profit of around 742 million euros on the cards. Industry expert Akash Gupta from U.S. bank JPMorgan spoke of a good end to the year. Management's targets for 2023 could also push up market expectations for operating profit somewhat.

Gea CEO Klebert considered the results particularly noteworthy given the difficult environment. "Dealing with several, interlinked crises demanded a lot from us last year." For example, the company had to contend with problems in the supply of certain components, which have affected many companies for some time.

Despite this, the Group increased its sales by almost ten percent to just under 5.2 billion euros. Adjusted for exchange rates and changes in business mix, the increase was around nine percent. Management had recently forecast an increase of more than seven percent.

Order intake rose by around nine percent to 5.7 billion euros. According to the figures, business with the dairy and chemical industries in particular showed strong growth. At the end of December, the order backlog totaled 3.2 billion euros, almost 15 percent higher than a year earlier.

Below the line, Gea earned a good 401 million euros, almost a third more than a year earlier. The dividend is to rise from 90 to 95 cents per share. However, analysts on average had expected somewhat more here.

For 2023, the Management Board again expects higher sales and higher profits in day-to-day business, also thanks to the good order trend. Adjusted for foreign exchange and the purchase and sale of parts of the Group, sales are expected to increase by more than five percent. In terms of adjusted operating profit, management reserves a wider margin: Depending on whether Gea reaches the lower or upper end of the forecast, this corresponds to an increase of between 2.5 and 11 percent.

Return on capital employed (ROCE) is expected to be at least 29 percent on a constant currency basis. Last year, it had increased in absolute terms from 27.8 to 31.8 percent. Adjusted for exchange rate fluctuations, it reached 30.9 percent, which is even higher than the figure forecast by the Management Board in the fall./stw/zb/mis