HEIDELBERG (dpa-AFX) - Heidelberger Druck is taking a cautious view of the new financial year following a decline in sales and earnings. Revenues in the current financial year (ending March) are expected to remain at the previous year's level of just under 2.4 billion euros, as the company announced in Heidelberg on Tuesday. The Heidelberg-based company assumes that the global economy will not grow more slowly than predicted by the institutes and that the main exchange rates will not change substantially. The share price rose significantly.

As in the previous year, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization adjusted for special effects are expected to account for 7.2 percent of sales. The SDax-listed company had already presented key figures for the past financial year in mid-May.

The share price recently rose by almost three percent. According to analyst Peter Rothenaicher from Baader Bank, the annual balance sheet did not come as a surprise based on the key data published in advance. However, the outlook is cautiously optimistic in view of the improved demand following the Drupa trade fair.

The printing press manufacturer also announced that the large number of orders from Drupa had led to a further recovery in order intake at the start of the new financial year. This is expected to be around 650 million euros in the first quarter. The important industry trade fair usually takes place every four years.

Heidelberger Druck had already landed more orders at the end of the past financial year in a challenging environment. Incoming orders improved "significantly" to just under 600 million euros in the three months to the end of March. In the third quarter of the financial year, the situation was significantly weaker - business in Asia, particularly in China, had now improved, according to reports in mid-May. Over the year as a whole, orders fell by around six percent to just under 2.3 billion euros.

Due to better utilization of production capacities, the company intends to end short-time working at its German sites in June of this year. Against the backdrop of falling order intake, the company introduced short-time working in parts of production and at several locations in January. Initially, this was to run until the end of March. The company management wanted to save a low single-digit million amount in the short term by introducing short-time working.

In the past financial year (to the end of March), turnover shrank by two percent year-on-year to just under 2.4 billion euros, as already announced. Adjusted operating profit (EBITDA) also fell by two percent. At the bottom line, profit fell from 91 million euros in the previous year to 39 million euros. Among other things, the increased interest expense for pensions had a negative impact here.

In mid-April, it was surprisingly announced that the previous CEO Ludwin Monz would be stepping down. He will be succeeded by former S.Oliver CEO Jürgen Otto.

Meanwhile, the company is cutting costs in order to become more profitable. Around 250 initiatives have been identified as part of a program since April last year, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen announced. The company is continuously implementing these. With these measures, the Group was able to successfully compensate for the considerable negative impact of declining demand and rising costs in the past financial year.

In addition, measures to optimize working capital made a positive contribution to cash and cash equivalents. At the end of the financial year (as at the end of March), the Group reported a free cash inflow of EUR 56 million. In the first nine months, there had still been a cash outflow of 54 million euros.

Following a profound crisis, Heidelberger Druck repositioned itself a few years ago, scrapping loss-making products, cutting jobs and focusing on packaging printing and digitization - in other words, on more software automation for customers in the printing industry, among others.

Since 2018, the company has also been selling self-developed wallboxes - small systems attached to the garage wall for fast charging of electric cars. They are sold via Amazon and partly in partnerships with energy suppliers. With the acquisition of the charging station technology from energy company EnBW at the end of 2021, products for public spaces were also added./mne/niw/mis