Heidelberger Druck Q1 orders plummet as pandemic stunts investment

Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG

13/08/2020 07:11

FRANKFURT, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Incoming orders at Germany's
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen  HDDG.DE  slumped by 44% in the
quarter to end June as the coronavirus pandemic led to "massive
investment restraint" in the printing technology sector, it said
on Thursday.
    "As expected, and as across virtually all sectors and
particularly the export-oriented mechanical engineering
industry, the COVID-19 pandemic had a huge impact on the
quarter," Heidelberg Chief Executive Rainer Hundsdoerfer said in
a statement.
    Fiscal first-quarter orders fell to 346 million euros and
its order backlog shrank to 605 million from 730 million euros a
year earlier, it said.
    Heidelberg said however that it saw early signs of recovery
in June, with orders rising around 27% from May.
    It posted a profit of 5 million euros in the quarter,
compared with a year-earlier loss of 31 million, thanks to a
restructuring of its pension plans.
    It affirmed its guidance for a loss in its fiscal 2020/2021,
despite the upcoming sale of its subsidiaries Gallus Group and
CERM for around 50 million euros and the effects from the early
repayment of a high-yield bond.
    It also said it was still on track to improve its
profitability by some 100 million euros in the medium term. 

 (Reporting by Arno Schuetze; Editing by Maria Sheahan; Editing
by Jan Harvey)
 ((arno.schuetze@thomsonreuters.com; +49 30220133648;))