Burckhardt Compression orders rise 5.4% to 422.5 million francs in first half
Key Facts
Burckhardt Compression's orders rose 5.4% year on year to 422.5 million Swiss francs in the first half of fiscal 2026, beating the analyst consensus of 375 million francs by about 13%, according to company data and an Investing.com report published on 3 November. The company said orders increased in both its Systems and Services divisions, pointing to an improvement in new business despite lower sales during the period. Orders also rose 2.9% excluding currency translation and acquisition effects, less than the nominal increase. The announcement came with the company reaffirming its fiscal 2026 outlook.
Orders in the Systems division reached 260.9 million francs, up 6.3% from the year-earlier period, while Services orders reached 161.6 million, up 4.1%, the company said. It attributed the improved revenue mix to a higher share of Services, which helped lift the gross profit margin by 0.3 percentage points to 28.6%. Marine business remained strong, particularly orders for liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas carriers. First-half orders included the first large order for a carbon dioxide transport vessel for the Northern Lights project. They also included hydrogen projects for the semiconductor industry in Taiwan and Korea.
By contrast, sales fell 11.1% to 459.0 million francs from 516.2 million a year earlier, and declined 13.6% excluding currency and acquisition effects. The company said sales were affected by an order book below its previous record levels and by the timing of project execution and delivery. Net profit also fell to 43.0 million francs from 48.7 million in the year-earlier period. The company said higher financial income contributed to the result, while the tax rate was 24.9%, slightly higher.
In terms of capital efficiency, return on net operating assets rose to 40.1% from 36.2% in the year-earlier period, exceeding the company's mid-term guidance range of more than 25%. But the company said pressures persisted in certain markets, as excess capacity, trade uncertainty and delayed investment decisions weighed on China. It added that logistics and raw-material disruptions in the Middle East increased pressure on Asia and Europe. Chief Executive Fabrice Billard said: "We are successfully expanding into new markets and supporting a return to growth despite continued short-term uncertainty." He said the focus included disciplined execution and strengthening cost competitiveness.
Burckhardt Compression reaffirmed its fiscal 2026 outlook, targeting sales of between 900 million and 1 billion Swiss francs and an EBIT margin of about 12%. The company expects stronger sales in the second half, citing the timing of deliveries and its current order book. It also said it expects maintenance activity among a number of customers in the Middle East and Asia to recover gradually when conditions in the Strait of Hormuz return to normal. The company estimates that restructuring measures will generate annual savings of about 20 million francs from fiscal 2027. Over the medium term, it targets sales of 1.2 billion francs and an EBIT margin of between 12% and 15%.
Following the results, AWP said Zürcher Kantonalbank had expected the market to raise estimates for the current fiscal year by about 10% and viewed the results as a positive signal for investor sentiment. UBS saw limited scope for higher earnings estimates, because current estimates were already in the upper half of the guidance range reaffirmed by the company. The company set 3 June 2027 for publication of its fiscal 2026 results and 3 July 2027 for its annual general meeting.