By Paolo Laudani
(Reuters) – Defence electronics maker Hensoldt on Thursday reported a growing order intake and forecast revenue to rise this year, as global tensions fuel defence spending.
The German firm posted for its 2024 financial year an order intake of 2.90 billion euros ($3.05 billion), a jump of 28% from the previous year, and said it expected revenue this year of between 2.50 billion and 2.60 billion euros, in line with an LSEG consensus.
For the past financial year, it posted sales of 2.2 billion euros.
The defence electronics specialist, which makes the lion’s share of its revenue in Europe, has benefited from an increase in military orders across the region as governments scramble to beef up their defence investments in the wake of the war in Ukraine and a changed attitude in Washington.
“The demand for sophisticated electronic defense and security solutions such as those offered by Hensoldt will continue to increase in the coming years,” CEO Oliver Doerre said in a statement.
The firm is well-positioned to achieve its target of 5 billion euros in sales in 2030, he added.
In an interview with Reuters, Doerre said the war in Ukraine accounts for a low single-digit share of Hensoldt’s order intake and that a ceasefire would not change Russia’s threat to the NATO alliance.
He said his firm was also benefiting from difficulties in the ailing automotive industry.
“We are in talks with Continental and Bosch about taking on employees. The skills that these employees bring to the table are a good fit for our requirements,” Doerre said.
Hensoldt, which provides sensor systems for the Eurofighter, the flagship European fighter jet, said it planned to pay a dividend of 0.5 euros per share this year.
($1 = 0.9520 euros)
(Reporting by Paolo Laudani in Gdansk; Additional reporting by Alexander Huebner; Editing by Jamie Freed)
