Barclays turns Lufthansa from 'Overweight' to 'Underweight' + PUMA announces its outlook for 2025 + Rheinmetall targets further strong growth in the defense boom + VW subsidiary Porsche cuts medium-term forecast
Barclays downgrades Lufthansa $LHA (+3,4 %)from 'Overweight' to 'Underweight'
- The British investment bank Barclays has lowered its rating for Lufthansa shares by two notches from "Overweight" to "Underweight" and cut its target price from 10.50 to 6.50 euros.
- "We fear that the golden goose has been cooked," wrote analyst Andrew Lobbenberg in his reassessment of European airlines on Wednesday with a view to the important North Atlantic business.
- The US airlines justified their recent profit warnings with the domestic business.
- However, Lobbenberg fears that this will have a wider impact.
- Weaker consumer and business sentiment will not leave unimpressed the wealthy customers who have supported the airlines with their demand over the past two years.
PUMA $PUM (+3,8 %)announces its outlook for 2025
- For 2025, PUMA anticipates continued geopolitical tensions and economic challenges, particularly in terms of trade tensions and currency volatility.
- Against this backdrop, PUMA expects currency-adjusted sales growth in the low to mid single-digit percentage range.
- Due to the cost efficiency program nextlevel, PUMA expects one-time expenses of up to EUR 75 million in 2025.
- In return, the company expects to generate an additional EBIT of up to EUR 100 million in 2025 compared to 2024.
- The net contribution of the nextlevel cost efficiency program to EBIT in 2025 is expected to be up to EUR 25 million.
- To provide a reliable outlook on the underlying business development, the company publishes an outlook on adjusted EBIT for 2025 excluding one-time costs.
- PUMA expects adjusted EBIT for the financial year 2025 to be in the range of EUR 520 million to EUR 600 million (2024: EUR 622.0 million).
- Taking into account one-time expenses of up to EUR 75 million from the nextlevel program, EBIT in 2025 is expected to be between EUR 445 million and EUR 525 million (2024: EUR 622.0 million).
- For the first quarter, PUMA expects currency-adjusted sales growth in the low single-digit range below the previous year's level, mainly due to a weak business development in the US and China.
- Due to effects from the valuation of inventories in the previous year, a higher operating expense ratio and a different timing of marketing expenses, adjusted EBIT is expected to be around EUR 70 million.
- Including the one-off costs, EBIT in the first quarter is expected to be significantly below the previous year's level (Q1 2024: EUR 159.0 million).
- For the financial year 2024, the Management Board and the Supervisory Board of PUMA SE will propose a dividend distribution of EUR 0.61 to the Annual General Meeting on May 21, 2025, with consolidated net income of EUR 281.6 million and taking into account the share buyback of EUR 50 million.
Rheinmetall $RHM (-4,49 %)aims for further strong growth in the armaments boom
- In view of rising defense budgets across Europe, Rheinmetall expects business to continue to shine in the current year.
- Sales are expected to increase by between 25 and 30 percent in 2025, as Germany's largest defense company announced in Düsseldorf on Wednesday.
- Last year, sales rose by 36 percent year-on-year to 9.75 billion euros.
- Rheinmetall had forecast around 10 billion euros.
- The operating margin rose to 15.2 percent in 2024 after 12.8 percent in the previous year.
- Rheinmetall is aiming for a slight increase to around 15.5 percent in the current year.
- Last year, the operating result soared by 61% to €1.48 billion compared to 2023.
- After Rheinmetall was once again able to land many new orders, the order backlog is higher than ever before.
- Shareholders are to receive a dividend of 8.10 euros per share for 2024, previously 5.70 euros were paid out.
VW subsidiary Porsche $P911 (+4,74 %)cuts medium-term forecast but maintains dividend
- Sports car manufacturer Porsche AG is becoming more cautious due to the more difficult environment for the coming years.
- "In the long term, we are sticking to our fundamental ambition of a Group return on sales of more than 20 percent," said new CFO Jochen Breckner on Wednesday, according to a press release.
- "In the medium term, we are aiming for 15 to 17 percent due to the persistently challenging environment."
- Previously, the Stuttgart-based VW subsidiary had seen between 17 and 19 percent in this time horizon.
- Last year, the operating margin slipped from 18.0 to 14.1 percent because business in China in particular was weak.
- This year, as already announced, the margin is likely to be only 10 to 12 percent due to investments in new models and conversion costs.
- Sports car manufacturer Porsche AG intends to keep its dividend stable this year despite a slump in profits in the previous year and high investments.
- The Stuttgart-based VW subsidiary announced on Wednesday that it will pay 2.31 euros per Dax-listed preference share.
Wednesday: Stock market dates, economic data, quarterly figures
- ex-dividend of individual stocks
- Southwest Airlines USD 0.18
- HP 0.29 USD
- Quarterly figures / company dates USA / Asia
- 18:00 Starbucks AGM
- 21:05 Adobe quarterly figures
- Quarterly figures / Company dates Europe
- 07:00 Grand City Properties | Brenntag | Wacker Chemie | Klöckner & Co | ABN Amro Annual results
- 07:30 Porsche AG | Rheinmetall | Inditex Annual results
- 08:00 Puma annual result
- 09:00 Porsche AG PK | Klöckner & Co BI-PK
- 10:00 Puma | Rheinmetall | Wacker Chemie | Brenntag BI-PK
- 15:00 Puma Analyst Conference
- 16:00 Brenntag Analyst Conference
- No time specified: Mercedes-Benz Group Annual Report
- Economic data
09:45 DE: ECB President Lagarde, speech at conference "The ECB and it's Watchers XXV" (including Governing Council members Villeroy de Galhau 10:30, Escrica 13:00, Nagel 14:45 and Lane 16:15)
13:30 US: Real Income February
13:30 US: Consumer prices February PROGNOSE: +0.3% yoy/+2.9% yoy previous: +0.5% yoy/+3.0% yoy Core consumer prices PROGNOSE: +0.3% yoy/+3.2% yoy previous: +0.4% yoy/+3.3% yoy
14:45 CA: Bank of Canada, results of the Monetary Policy Council FORECAST: n/a previous: 3.00%
15:30 US: Crude oil inventory data (week) from the government Energy Information Administration (EIA) previous week
