Eberspächer reported that in 2023, it had a net revenue of €3.0 billion, an increase of 10.3% compared to the previous year.
The company said it is successfully continuing its transformation. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) adjusted for extraordinary items totaled €58.0 million, underlining the operational turnaround. The improvement in cash flow also illustrates the effectiveness of the measures introduced.
Eberspächer said recorded progress with its transformation in the 2023 fiscal year. “Operationally, we achieved the turnaround by consistently managing measures last year. In addition, the double-digit percentage growth in net revenue once again proved that we have the right product portfolio,” said Managing Partner Martin Peters, when summarizing the fiscal year.
While customer demand for products relating to conventional drives remained at a high level globally, around 90% of revenue in the area of thermal management and vehicle electronics were already generated with products that are independent of the passenger car combustion engine.
“We are ready for the future,” said Peters, adding, “But our industry remains in a difficult overall situation.”
Geopolitical uncertainties and persistently high energy prices and inflation rates shaped the business environment. As global supply chains were affected by bottlenecks in the first half of the year, customer call-offs decreased over the course of the year. This particularly affected products related to e-mobility, which were and are being launched on the market more slowly than expected.
The consolidated revenue of the Eberspächer Group decreased by -1.4% to €6,349.0 million (prior year: €6,437.5 million). Net revenue — adjusted for transitory items such as monoliths that are installed in exhaust systems and do not contribute to value creation — increased by 10.3% to €3,002.9 million in 2023, significantly exceeding the forecast. The purely operating result of the Eberspächer Group, adjusted for extraordinary items and one-off expenses in connection with the transformation, amounted to €58.0 million (prior year: €26.6 million). This reflects the progress made in operational improvement. The measures introduced to optimize cash management took effect and led to a significantly improved cash flow from operating activities of €269.2 million (prior year: €187.7 million). The continued high research and development expenses of €55.9 million (prior year: €51.6 million) underlines the investments in further expanding the technology portfolio in all divisions. An average of 11,171 people were employed at around 80 locations in 30 countries.
Outlook
In a year that will continue to be very challenging for the entire automotive industry, the company does not expect the markets to ease in 2024 and therefore predicts sales to fall below the prior year’s level.
“We are therefore continuing to work consistently on our competitiveness,” said Peters. He continued, “We are ready for the future as we have the right product portfolio for every drive type. In combination with our international positioning, we can be successful in all regions under changing market conditions.”
The first months of 2024 gave him cause for optimism as the company is on track operationally and has also won important new orders. The supplier is driving the transformation forward in a targeted manner by transferring existing technologies to new business areas and increasing efficiency and competitiveness in the core business.
View the full financial report here.