R. STAHL publishes half-year results – Sales and profitability in line with planning – Forecast for 2026 confirmed

R. STAHL publishes half-year results – Sales and profitability in line with planning – Forecast for 2026 confirmed

• R. STAHL’s sales declined slightly from January through June to
  € 145.6 million (previous year: € 151.2 million)
• Order intake after six months at € 145.8 million below the strong figure from the previous year (€ 165.8 million) due to economic conditions
• Profitability up significantly year-over-year – R. STAHL improved EBITDA pre exceptionals from € 8.9 million to € 12.7 million in the first half of 2026 – Resulting in an EBITDA margin pre exceptionals of 8.7% (previous year: 5.9%)
• Given development in line with planning through the first two quarters, the Executive Board confirms its forecast for full year 2026

Waldenburg, 31 July 2026 – Global macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties continued to weigh on customers' willingness to invest in the first half of 2026. The company was nevertheless able to stabilize its sales and improve its profitability.

Order intake declines to € 145.8 million (previous year: € 165.8 million) as a result of investment caution – Order backlog stands at € 90.1 million
As a result of the continued sluggish investment climate in R. STAHL’s core industries, order intake from January through June 2026 declined by 12.1% to € 145.8 million. In the second quarter of 2026, however, order intake stabilized compared to the same quarter of the previous year, rising slightly by 2.4% to € 68.6 million. Order activity was subdued in the first half of the year, particularly in the chemical industry and in mechanical and plant engineering.
Order backlog as of 30 June 2026 was virtually stable compared to the end of 2025 at € 90.1 million (31 December 2025: € 90.9 million). It declined significantly compared to the prior-year figure (30 June 2025: € 113.0 million).

Sales from January through June stabilized as planned at € 145.6 million
As expected, R. STAHL’s sales declined by a modest 3.7% to € 145.6 million in the first half of 2026. Sales were supported by the Asia/Pacific region (+48.8%), which benefited from the implementation of a major project order. The sales regions Germany (-9.0%), the Central Region (-12.9%), and the Americas (-22.3%) all reported declining sales.

Cost-optimization measures are yielding results – Profitability up significantly – EBITDA pre exceptionals improve from € 8.9 million to € 12.7 million
In the first half of 2026, R. STAHL significantly strengthened its profitability compared to the previous year. This development was primarily attributable to the effects of the cost-optimization measures implemented. EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation) pre exceptionals rose by € 3.8 million to € 12.7 million from January through June 2026. The company’s profitability, measured by the EBITDA margin pre exceptionals, increased during the same period from 5.9% in the prior year to 8.7%. Net profit improved by € 2.2 million to € -2.7 million (H1 2025: € -5.0 million). This corresponds to earnings per share of € -0.42 (H1 2025: € -0.77).

R. STAHL improved its free cash flow by € 6.1 million to € -6.9 million in the first two quarters (H1 2025: € -13.1 million), largely due to the improvement in net profit. The increase in working capital remained virtually stable at € -9.9 million compared to the prior year (€ -9.6 million). Given the continued negative free cash flow and increased loan utilization, net debt – excluding pension provisions and lease liabilities – rose to € 43.7 million as of 30 June 2026. The equity ratio stood at 27.7% as of 30 June 2026 (31 December 2025: 29.2%).

R. STAHL confirms forecast for financial year 2026
For 2026, the company expects investment activity in key industries to remain weak. Forecast uncertainties primarily relate to difficult-to-predict developments arising from geopolitical conflicts, international tariff policies, as well as potential trade disputes and supply chain disruptions.

Against this backdrop, R. STAHL expects business to stabilize for the full year 2026. Group sales are projected to range between € 285 million and € 300 million (2025: € 313.0 million). For EBITDA pre exceptionals, the Executive Board forecasts a figure between € 22 million and € 27 million for the current financial year (2025: € 34.4 million). The company expects a break even figure for free cash flow in 2026 (2025: € -0.3 million).

“In financial year 2026, R. STAHL’s priorities will focus on economic stabilization, cash flow discipline and the structural development of the R. STAHL Group”, says Tobias Popp, Executive Board R. STAHL AG.

Key figures of R. STAHL Group for Q2 and H1 2026 pursuant to IFRS 

€ million			Q2 2026			Q2 2025		Change in %			6M 2026			6M 2025		Change in %
Sales			72.2			77.9		-7.3			145.6			151.2		-3.7
Germany			16.2			16.9		-3.9			32.3			35.5		-9.0
Central region1)			33.0			39.0		-15.4			65.3			74.9		-12.9
Americas			7.0			9.8		-28.7			13.9			17.8		-22.3
Asia/Pacific			16.1			12.3		+30.8			34.2			23.0		+48.8
EBITDA pre exeptionals2)			6.0			5.3		+13.7			12.7			8.9		+42.6
EBITDA margin pre exeptionals2)			8.3%			6.8%					8.7%			5.9%
EBITDA			4.8			4.1		+17.7			11.2			7.5		+49.8
EBIT			0.3			-0.6		n/a			2.1			-1.8		n/a
Net profit			-2.5			-2.5		+1.3			-2.7			-5.0		+45.0
Earnings per share (in €)			-0.38			-0.38		+0.0			-0.42			-0.77		+45.5
Order income			68.6			67.0		+2.4			145.8			165.8		-12.1
Order backlog as of 30 June											90.1			113.0		-20.3
Cash flow from operating activities			-1.1			-5.5		+79.8			-3.3			-5.9		+44.7
Free cash flow			-3.0			-9.1		+66.7			-6.9			-13.1		+46.9
Depreciation and amortization			4.5			4.6		-2.7			9.1			9.3		-2.3
Capital expenditures			1.8			3.6		-49.0			3.6			7.1		-49.4
											30 June 2026			31 Dec. 2025		Change in %
Balance sheet total											264.2			258.9		+2.1
Shareholders‘ equity											73.3			75.7		-3.2
Equity ratio											27.7%			29.2%
Net financial liabilities3)											43.7			34.9		+25.5
Net financial liabilities incl. lease liabilites											60.9			48.3		+26.2
Employees4)											1,589			1,659		-4.2

¹⁾ Africa and Europe without Germany
²⁾ Exceptionals: restructuring charges, unscheduled depreciation and amortization, charges for designing and implementing IT projects, M&A costs, gains and losses from deconsolidation transactions as well as profit and loss from the disposal of assets no longer required for business operations
³⁾ excl. pension provisions and without lease liabilities
⁴⁾ excl. apprentices
 

Percentages and figures in may include rounding differences. The signs used to indicate rates of changes are based on mathematical aspects: Increases are marked with a “+”, decreases with a “-“.  Rates of changes > +100% are shown as >+100%, rates of change <-100% as “n/a” (not applicable)

Note
The interim report H1 2026 is available for download under the following link: https://r-stahl.com/en/global/corporate/investor-relations/ir-news-and-publications/financial-reports

 

Financial calendar 2026
10 November Quarterly Statement Q3 2026
12 November MKK – Munich Capital Market Conference

About R. STAHL – www.r-stahl.com
R. STAHL is one of the world's leading suppliers of electrical and electronic products and systems for explosion protection. These products and systems prevent explosions in hazardous areas and contribute to the safety of people, machines and the environment. The portfolio covers the portfolio segments Electrical, Automation as well as Lighting and is completed by the cross-divisional function Customer Solutions. Typical customers are the chemical and pharmaceutical industry, the oil & gas industry – including LNG applications – as well as the food and beverage industry. Most of the R. STAHL products are also approved for use with hydrogen. In 2025, global sales amounting to around € 313 million were generated by 1,659 employees. The shares of R. STAHL AG are traded on the Regulated Market/Prime Standard of Deutsche Boerse (ISIN DE000A1PHBB5).
 

Forward-looking statements
This release contains forward-looking statements based on assumptions and estimates of R. STAHL’s management. Although we assume that the expectations of these forward-looking statements are realistic, we cannot guarantee that these expectations will prove to be correct. The assumptions may involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such discrepancies include: changes in the macroeconomic and business environment, exchange rate and interest rate fluctuations, the roll-out of competing products, a lack of acceptance of new products or services, and changes in business strategy. R. STAHL does not plan to update these forward-looking statements nor does it accept any obligation to do so.

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Investors‘, analysts‘ and press’ conference call of R. STAHL for Q2/2026

Tobias Popp, the Executive Board of R. STAHL AG, will explain the results of Q2 and H1 2026 and will present an outlook for the current year

today, July 31, 2026 at 10:00 CET.

Afterwards he will be available for questions. The conference call will be held in English language.

The earnings call will be held on mwb's ResearchHub. Please register for the call using the link  provided (https://research-hub.de/events/registration/2026-07-31-10-00/RSL2-GR).
A replay of the earnings call will be available shortly after the event has ended on the ResearchHub as well as on our company’s website in the section corporate > investor relations > IR news and ad hoc news (https://r-stahl.com/en/global/corporate/investor-relations/ir-news-and-publications/events-and-presentations)

We look forward to your participation.

Contact:
R. STAHL AG
Judith Schäuble
Director Corporate Communications & Investor Relations
Am Bahnhof 30
74638 Waldenburg (Württ.)
Germany

Tel. +49 7942 943-1396
investornews@r-stahl.com