By Isabel Demetz
(Reuters) -German defence electronics maker Hensoldt raised by 1 billion euros to 6 billion euros ($6.80 billion) its revenue forecast for 2030 as a result of increased defence spending in Europe, the company said on Wednesday.
The company, which also confirmed its revenue guidance for this year in a range of 2.5 billion to 2.6 billion euros, set its previous 5 billion euro target for 2030 during its capital markets day in December 2024.
Hensoldt, which produces radar and high precision optics used in aircraft, ships and tanks, has benefited from an uptake in military investments across Germany and wider Europe amid the ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and pressures from Washington to increase defence spending, CEO Oliver Doerre said.
The defence firm now had the “technologies, solutions and operational capabilities to play a significant role in the upcoming German and EU procurement programmes,” Doerre said in a company statement presenting first quarter results.
Hensoldt, which was spun off the European aerospace giant Airbus in 2017, reported order intake in the first quarter rose 5% to 701 million from a year earlier, helped by orders of radars for the Eurofighter jet produced by a European consortium.
The company’s order backlog therefore increased 18% to 6.93 billion euros, it added.
Its adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) came in at 30 million euros, slightly below last year’s figure of 33 million euros and analysts’ 35.5 million euro forecast, according to LSEG data.
The decline was due to the commissioning of a new logistics centre for its sensors segment, which led to a temporary decrease in productivity, the defence firm said.
Revenue for the quarter jumped 20% to 395 million euros, but slightly missed analysts’ expectations of 405 million euros.
Hensoldt also confirmed the rest of its outlook for 2025, expecting an adjusted EBITDA margin of around 18% and a book-to-bill ratio of around 1.2.
($1 = 0.8818 euros)
(Reporting by Isabel Demetz and Alexander HuebnerEditing by Tomasz Janowski)
