30.04.2025

Stable start for Hiab

Loader crane manufacturer Hiab has reported its first quarter as a standalone company, with slightly lower sales but improved profitability.

Total revenues: edged downwards one percent to €411million. The split between sales and services was follows new equipment sales came in at €294 million down one percent while Service revenues were flat at €118 million.

Order intake for the period also declined, coming in two percent lower at €378 million reducing the order book/backlog by 22 percent to €601 million. The orders were split between new equipment at €541 – down eight percent on the same quarter last year, while service orders improved five percent to €60 million.

Pre-tax profit was the best news of the quarter, improving seven percent to €64.1 million.

Chief executive Scott Phillips said: ”The first quarter was a historic one for Hiab. After more than 80 years of pioneering, Hiab became a standalone stock listed company. The quarter was also characterised by intensified trade tensions. Despite that, the quarter was one of the best in Hiab’s history, with stable order intake, record high comparable operating profit margin and strong cash generation.”

“With Hiab’s entry to Nasdaq Helsinki on 1st April shareholders of former Cargotec have shown their belief in Hiab’s future growth. We are proud of this trust and aim at generating strong cash flow and sustainable value for our shareholders, solidifying our position as the leader in the load handling industry.”

“Our orders received in the first quarter, were at a stable level for the tenth quarter in a row. Due to the increased trade tensions and lower equipment utilisation, our customers delayed their decision making in the Americas, whereas demand improved in other regions. Looking forward, we estimate that, due to trade tensions, the uncertainty of global growth outlook continues to be elevated. However, there are positive demand signs in some of the European markets. We also see continuing positive momentum in our defence logistics business.”

“Strong execution of commercial and supply chain actions led to improved profitability despite sales remaining at the level of the comparison period.”

Vertikal Comment

This a reasonable start for Hiab, given all the changes it is going through at the moment, you might expect the first year of trading independently to be a little challenging given all the management distractions at the same time as the current global trading environment. Not the best time to be going it alone!

So, all things considered a good start for the company.