According to preliminary figures, sales for the year as a whole increased by almost 14 percent to 1.24 billion euros, as the SDAX-listed company announced in Maintal on Tuesday. The euro, which was weak over the course of the year, helped sales significantly, with sales increasing by a good 7 percent under their own steam. NORMA raised prices due to increased costs and saw strong business especially in Europe in the fourth quarter.
A report from the Bloomberg news agency the previous evening that the group had rejected some takeover bids also sparked imagination. Financial investors Carlyle, PAI Partners and Triton were among those interested, and Carlyle is said to have been persistent. It was unclear whether the sales talks would resume, according to informed circles at Bloomberg. According to the news agency, representatives of all the companies mentioned did not want to comment.
In terms of costs, NORMA came under pressure last year. At EUR 99 million, earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) adjusted for special effects were 13 percent below the previous year’s figure, the corresponding margin fell by 2.4 percentage points to 8.0 percent. However, that was more operating profit than analysts had previously expected.
“In the past fiscal year, we were faced with some strong headwinds: drastic material price increases, uncertainties in the energy supply in Europe, the long-lasting strict corona measures in China and production backlogs at some locations,” said CEO Miguel Angel Lopez Borrego.
NORMA manufactures connecting parts for hoses and lines, among other things. Customers are primarily the automotive industry and agriculture. The company will present the detailed figures with the net result and the outlook for 2023 on March 28.
Takeover speculation lifts NORMA share to eight-month high
NORMA Group shares rose on Tuesday to their highest level since June 2022, at times jumping by almost 20 percent. They were reacting to takeover speculation and positive business figures from the connection technology specialist and automotive supplier. At times, the shares gained 16.4 percent via XETRA to EUR 23.28.
Analyst Peter Rothenaicher from Baader Bank found that the automotive supplier had achieved the recently announced goals. Despite the recent recovery, Norma shares are still fundamentally undervalued, he emphasized.
With the current plus, Norma’s price gain in the so far short year has already totaled around 37 percent after the price had halved in the previous year. Last September, the papers fell to a 12-year low, but have since recovered by around 80 percent.
MAINTAL / FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX)
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