Weak demand reflected in R. STAHL’s 2025 figures – Executive Board expects business to stabilize at a modest level in 2026

Weak demand reflected in R. STAHL’s 2025 figures – Executive Board expects business to stabilize at a modest level in 2026

• R. STAHL published its Annual Report for 2025 today
•  Group sales were down 9.1% to € 313.0 million – EBITDA pre exceptionals remained stable at € 34.4 million due to positive one-time items (previous year: € 34.4 million)
• At € 306.5 million, order intake below prior year level (€ 327.6 million). Free cash flow fell to € -0.3 million (previous year: € +14.8 million)
• For full-year 2026, the Executive Board expects sales to decline slightly compared to 2025, ranging from € 285 million to € 300 million as well as EBITDA pre exceptionals ranging from € 22 million to € 27 million
• With the NEXUS program for the future, launched at the beginning of the year, R. STAHL intends to increase its profitability and continues to develop into a global provider of explosion protection solutions in the medium and long term

 

Waldenburg, 16 April 2026 – R. STAHL published its Annual Report for 2025 today. Global economic and geopolitical uncertainties and conflicts significantly dampened customers’ willingness to invest in financial year 2025. Weak demand had a negative impact on R. STAHL’s business performance. With its NEXUS program for the future, R. STAHL will address these challenges and position the company for long-term success.

Sales decline 9.1% to € 313.0 million – order intake also below the prior year figure
The decline in demand from almost all customer sectors led to a drop in revenues in financial year 2025. R. STAHL’s sales fell by € 31.2 million, or 9.1%, to € 313.0 million from January through December 2025 (previous year: € 344.1 million). The forecast range, adjusted in July, was between € 320 million and € 330 million.

The company reported declining sales in all sales regions. The lowest decline in sales was in the Central region (Africa and Europe excluding Germany). At € 152.5 million, they were 6.3% below the prior-year figure. In Germany, sales were down 10.2% to € 71.5 million. The sales regions of the Americas (-13.9%) and Asia/Pacific (-11.6%) recorded more significant declines.

Order intake also suffered from a reluctance to invest, decreasing by € 21.0 million to € 306.5 million in 2025. Order backlog decreased to € 90.9 million at the end of 2025 (previous year: € 95.8 million).

Profitability remained at a high level due to temporary positive one-time items – free cash flow significantly lower than in the previous year
Despite declining sales, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) pre exceptionals remained at the prior-year level of € 34.4 million. The forecast range, adjusted in July, was between € 25 million and € 30 million. The high EBITDA pre exceptionals was attributable to temporary positive one-time items in the area of material and personnel costs, as well as a short-term increase in sales in December which was driven by major projects. The positive development of EBITDA pre exceptionals in the fourth quarter of 2025 does not reflect R. STAHL’s fundamentally restrained global business performance.

Free cash flow declined by € 15.1 million to € -0.3 million in 2025 (previous year: € +14.8 million), primarily due to the lower net profit and increased working capital. R. STAHL had forecasted a break-even figure for this in July. Driven by the positive net profit of € 3.0 million (previous year: € 5.8 million) and the slight decline in total assets, the equity ratio rose to 29.2% in financial year 2025 (previous year: 27.3%).

With these figures, R. STAHL confirms the preliminary figures published on 24 February 2026.

NEXUS program for the future – leveraging market potential in existing and new markets
R. STAHL launched the NEXUS program for the future in February 2026. The program will enable the company to increase its profitability and develop into a global solutions provider in the field of explosion protection and harsh environments in the medium and long term. In the current year, the Executive Board is focusing on the economic stabilization of the company. In addition, the structural and substantive foundations are being established to take advantage of growth opportunities in existing and new markets starting in 2027. Digitalization, internationalization, the expansion of the service and solutions business and more intensive cooperation within the Group play a central role in the successful implementation of NEXUS.

R. STAHL laying the groundwork for a sustainably successful future in 2026 – Executive Board expects slight decline in sales and earnings for 2026
For 2026, the company anticipates a further decline in investment in its key markets of Germany and Europe, particularly in relevant sectors such as the chemical industry. Forecasting uncertainties primarily relate to the unpredictable developments and consequences of geopolitical conflicts, international trade policies as well as potential trade disputes and supply chain issues.

Based on customers’ continued reluctance to invest at the start of the year and the declining order backlog, the Executive Board expects Group sales for the full year 2026 to be between € 285 million and € 300 million (2025: € 313.0 million). For EBITDA pre exceptionals, the company forecasts a figure between € 22 million and € 27 million for the current financial year (2025: € 34.4 million). R. STAHL expects a break even figure for free cash flow in 2026 (2025: € -0.3 million).

“2026 will be a challenging year for the R. STAHL team. Current economic and geopolitical uncertainties are having a negative impact on our customers’ investment decisions. What’s more, our markets are shifting away from Europe toward Asia and the Americas. R. STAHL must respond to these challenges with flexibility and agility. With NEXUS, we will lay the economic and structural foundation this year that will enable us to pursue a path of sustainable, profitable growth starting in 2027", says Dr. Claus Bischoff, CEO of R. STAHL, adding: “Our current and new markets have enormous potential for opportunities. We must seize these opportunities to successfully position R. STAHL as a leading international player in the market for electrical explosion protection and harsh environments in the long term. Along the way, R. STAHL intends to stand for a people-oriented corporate image that invites everyone to actively help shape the company – by us, for us.”

 

Key figures of R. STAHL Group for FY 2025 pursuant to IFRS

€ million 2025 2024 Change
in % Sales 313.0 344.1 -9.1 Order income 306.5 327.6 -6.4 Order backlog as of 31 December 90.9 95.8 -5.1 EBITDA pre exceptionals¹⁾ 34.4 34.4 0.0  in % of sales 11.0 10.0   EBITDA 25.5 33.8 -24.6 EBIT 6.6 15.8 -58.3 Net profit 3.0 5.8 -49.3 Earnings per share (in €) 0.46 0.90 -48.9 Dividend per share (in €) 0 0 n/a Cash flow from operating activities 13.4 28.6 -53.4 Free cash flow -0.3 14.8 n/a Depreciation and amortization 18.9 18.0 +5.1 Capital expenditures²⁾ 13.5 13.8 -2.0 Balance sheet total of 31 December 258.9 265.2 -2.4 Shareholders’ equity as of 31 December 75.7 72.3 +4.6  Equity ratio as of 31 December (in %) 29.2 27.3   Net debt as of 31 December³⁾ 34.9 28.7 +21.6 Employees as of 31 December⁴⁾ 1,659 1,743 -4.8

¹⁾ Exceptionals: restructuring charges, unscheduled depreciation and amortization, charges for designing and implementing of IT projects, M&A costs, gains and losses form deconsolidation processes as well as gains and losses from the disposal of assets no longer required for business operations
²⁾ Payments for investments in intangible assets and property, plant & equipment
³⁾ Cash and cash equivalents less interest-bearing loans
⁴⁾ excl. apprentices

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

 

Note
The Annual Report 2025 as well as the magazine ‘Safety. For certain.’ are available for download under the following link (Corporate – Investor Relations – IR News and Ad hoc News – Financial Reports): https://r-stahl.com/en/global/corporate/investor-relations/ir-news-and-publications/financial-reports.

The quarterly statement for Q1 2026 will be disclosed on 7 May 2026.

 

Earnings Call of R. STAHL AG and R. STAHL Group for FY 2025

The Executive Board of R. STAHL AG will explain the results of FY 2025 and will present an outlook for the current year

today at 10:00 CET.

Afterwards they will be available for questions. The event will be held in English language.

The earnings call will be held on mwb's ResearchHub. Please register for the call using the following link: https://research-hub.de/events/registration/2026-04-16-10-00/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 talking to you.

 

 Financial calendar 2025
7 May Quarterly Statement Q1 2026
16 June 33rd Annual General Meeting
6 August Interim Report H1 2026
5 November Quarterly Statement Q3 2026

 

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.

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