SBF AG Reports Strong First Half Performance Despite Challenging Manufacturing Environment

SBF AG reported robust operational performance for the first half of 2025, navigating what the company described as an extremely challenging market environment for the manufacturing industry. The publicly traded German firm, which specializes in innovative solutions for rolling stock, lighting, electromechanics, and sensor technology, maintained strong financial discipline while implementing strategic restructuring measures that significantly improved profitability.

Group revenue reached EUR 21.9 million in the first half, slightly below the EUR 22.9 million recorded in the same period last year. This modest decline was primarily attributed to short-term delays in customer call-off orders, which the company expects will also affect second-half performance. However, the more significant story emerged in profitability metrics, with EBITDA rising substantially to EUR 0.5 million compared to just EUR 0.1 million in the first half of 2024.

The improved earnings performance resulted from the beginning of positive effects from restructuring measures and efficiency improvements implemented across the organization. When adjusted for a precautionary entry related to a customer insolvency, EBITDA actually amounted to EUR 0.9 million, demonstrating the underlying strength of the company's operational improvements.

Robert Stöcklinger, member of the Management Board of SBF AG, explained the context: "We are operating in an extremely challenging market environment. Consumer reluctance, supply chain problems, and structural adjustments are shaping the business. In this demanding phase, we have once again demonstrated our resilience." He added that the company remains on track to achieve its annual targets and sees new opportunities emerging from extensive investments in infrastructure, mobility, and defense sectors.

Segment performance revealed mixed results but overall positive trends. The Rolling Stock segment showed particular strength, generating sales of EUR 11 million in the first half, representing a 19% increase compared to the EUR 9 million recorded in the same period last year. Despite expecting some short-term postponements from customers in the second half, the company maintains an exceptionally high order backlog in this segment, ensuring good production capacity utilization in the coming months and years due to contractually secured project durations.

The Public and Industrial Lighting segment underperformed initial expectations, with revenue of EUR 4.5 million compared to EUR 6 million in the first half of 2024. The company attributed this to weaker order intake and Germany's sluggish industrial economy. However, SBF has implemented extensive measures to strengthen this business, including relocating production to Budweis, where operations are now fully functional with significantly lower rental and personnel costs. The company has also obtained product certifications for projects with Deutsche Bahn and local authorities to bolster future order entry.

The newly established Sensor Technology and Electromechanics segment delivered solid performance, generating EUR 7 million in revenue, matching the previous year's first-half results. Measures to increase earnings are already showing positive effects, and based on the promising order backlog, the company expects good results by year-end. This segment is positioned to play a central role in the Group's long-term growth strategy, with increasing synergy effects expected to strengthen the entire Group's earnings power.

The Management Board confirmed its outlook for the full 2025 fiscal year, expecting revenue between EUR 43.0 and 46.0 million, compared to EUR 47.2 million in the previous year. More importantly, consolidated EBITDA is projected to reach EUR 1.5 to 2.5 million, a substantial improvement over the previous year's EUR 0.6 million. The company targets significant profitability improvements starting from 2025 onward, signaling confidence in the ongoing effectiveness of its restructuring initiatives.

The 2025 half-year report provides detailed financial information and is accessible through the company's investor relations portal at https://www.sbf-ag.com/investor-relations/finanzpublikationen. The report underscores SBF's ability to maintain operational stability and improve profitability despite facing multiple headwinds in the manufacturing sector, positioning the company for sustainable growth as market conditions potentially improve.