The commercial vehicle supplier Jost Werke slipped into the red in 2025 following a takeover. The loans for the purchase of hydraulics specialist Hyva and the loss-making disposal of its loader crane business resulted in an annual loss of almost 15 million euros for the Group. Nevertheless, shareholders are to receive a stable dividend of 1.50 euros per share, as Jost announced on Thursday. For 2026, CEO Joachim Dürr expects business to be better than in the previous year despite the crisis. However, the positive statements were not appreciated on the stock exchange.
The Jost share lost more than five percent to 54.10 euros in the morning, making it one of the laggards in the small-cap index SDax . At the same time, the remaining price gains from the year to date vanished into thin air.
In 2024, the company from Neu-Isenburg near Frankfurt am Main had still earned 52.6 million euros on the bottom line. The Group also explained that things were so much worse in 2025 with higher taxes as a result of the Hyva takeover and a positive currency effect from the previous year, which was not repeated. Jost had also acquired the loader crane business with Hyva, but sold it again in December due to a lack of interest. This alone resulted in a loss of a good 16 million euros.
Last year, Jost increased its turnover by 43.5 percent to a good 1.5 billion euros thanks to the Hyva takeover. Excluding special items, earnings before interest and taxes (adjusted EBIT) increased by 29 percent to around 145 million euros. However, the corresponding margin fell from 10.6 to 9.5 percent.
For the current year, CEO Dürr is aiming for significant increases in day-to-day business - but at the same time is restricting his forecasts. "The world around us shows that volatility and uncertainty have become the new normal," he said. The consequences of the Iran war for the global economy, supply chains and Jost itself cannot be quantified at present.
The manager assumes that the company will be able to increase its turnover by a single-digit percentage in the current year. Adjusted operating profit should increase by a mid to high single-digit percentage and the adjusted operating margin should improve accordingly. However, the economic momentum could weaken due to the war in Iran, the Executive Board points out. A disruption to supply chains could also have a negative impact on Jost's business.
