2021 was an eventful and successful year for Stadler in many respects. The company achieved historic figures in 2021 in terms of revenue, EBIT, order intake and order backlog, beating all the records since the IPO. “Although the economic situation is still affected by the pandemic – in particular with regard to supply chain issues – we can look back proudly on our best year since the IPO. This is impressively borne out by the strategic direction and performance of our Group”, said Peter Spuhler, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors and Group CEO a.i., about the past business year.
Never before has Stadler received so many orders within a single business year. At CHF 5.6 billion, order intake considerably exceeded last year’s figure of CHF 4.3 billion and was higher than the previous record of CHF 5.1 billion set in 2019. This was despite the fact that two major orders from SBB and ÖBB were blocked at the end of the year and the order from the VDV consortium could not be booked until early 2022. The ÖBB contract was definitively awarded at the beginning of 2022. As a result of the rise in production capacities over recent years, Stadler will be in a position to meet the record order backlog of CHF 17.9 billion (31 December 2020: CHF 16.1 billion) in the coming years.
Despite the supply chain challenges facing Stadler and the ongoing effects of the pandemic on approval and delivery processes, as well as on the service business, Stadler largely succeeded in catching up the delays in the acceptance of new vehicles from 2020. This led to a noticeable rise in revenue of 18 percent to a record level of CHF 3.6 billion compared to CHF 3.1 billion in the previous year and CHF 3.2 billion in the pre-crisis year 2019. In the second half of the year in particular, the current supply chain situation caused delays in the delivery of certain supplier parts. Thanks to Stadler’s agility and nimbleness, as well as the strong local anchorage of our supply chains, these delays have so far not led to any significant slippages in the deliveries of our vehicles.
Significant improvement in EBIT and EBIT margin
The operating result at EBIT level increased by 43 percent to CHF 223.7 million (2020: CHF 156.1 million). In view of the current supply chain situation, production processes had to be continuously optimised in order to ensure the timely delivery of new vehicles. This had a partially negative impact on the operating result. In the second half of the year, Stadler significantly increased profitability in relation to the first half of 2021 from 3.5 to 7.9 percent, resulting in an EBIT margin of 6.2 percent for the full year (2020: 5.1 percent).
In terms of net profit, Stadler posted a profit of CHF 134.5 million in the 2021 financial year compared to CHF 138.4 million the previous year. Net profit was impacted in particular by foreign exchange losses of CHF 37.7 million (previous year: exchange rate gains of CHF 16 million). These were mainly due to reporting date valuation effects related to the weakness of the euro at the end of the year. Stadler hedges foreign currency risks in connection with the euro as far as possible in the form of “natural hedging”. As a result of time differences in planned incoming and outgoing payments, corresponding exchange rate gains or losses can occur on the balance sheet date. These had a particularly negative impact on the financial result at the end of the year due to high incoming payments and the strong appreciation of the Swiss franc.
The significant improvement in free cash flow to CHF 434.2 million compared to CHF –450.4 million in the 2020 financial year is very encouraging. In addition to catch-up effects from the previous year, this recovery also resulted from accelerated deliveries and higher advance payments for new projects. Net debt was significantly reduced to CHF 351 million as at 31 December 2021 compared to CHF 608 million as at 31 December 2020. This improvement was possible despite delays in decisions regarding the awarding of individual projects originally expected before the end of the year – and the associated customer down payments.
“Rolling Stock” segment
In the “Rolling Stock” reporting segment, order intake in 2021 amounted to CHF 4.8 billion, up 68 percent in relation to the previous year. The order backlog in the reporting segment rose by 12 percent year-on-year to CHF 13.5 billion (31 December 2020: CHF 12.0 billion). The high order intake was achieved despite the fact that two very large contracts were blocked due to objections at the end of 2021: the framework agreement with Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), Thurbo and RegionAlps for up to 510 single-decker FLIRT multiple-units and the framework agreement with Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) for up to 186 double-decker trains. In addition, the contract for the largest order in the company’s history was not awarded until the beginning of January 2022: the framework agreement for a German-Austrian project consortium with a total volume of up to EUR 4 billion includes the supply of up to 504 tram-trains. Major orders in 2021 included an order from the Spanish state railway company, Renfe, for 59 high-capacity trains for local transport and 60 additional KISS double-decker multiple units for SBB.
Thanks to numerous deliveries of new vehicles, the “Rolling Stock” reporting segment generated revenue of CHF 3.2 billion in the 2021 financial year. This resulted in a rise in turnover of 16 percent year-on-year (2020: CHF 2.7 billion ).
“Service & Components” segment
Order intake in the “Service & Components” reporting segment amounted to CHF 733 million in 2021. The decrease compared to the previous year (2020: CHF 1.5 billion) is essentially due to the exceptionally high order intake from two large orders in the 2020 financial year. In the strategically important service business, order backlog increased by 7 percent to CHF 4.4 billion compared to the end of 2020 (31 December 2020: CHF 4.1 billion) and thus contributed just under a quarter of the Group’s order backlog. This was partly due to the eight new full-service contracts signed in 2021 for customers in countries including Germany, Italy and Sweden.
Despite reduced capacities in rail transport due to the pandemic, the “Service & Components” segment continues to enjoy very successful growth. As in the previous year, revenue rose by a further 33 percent to CHF 455.2 million compared to the 2020 financial year (CHF 343.3 million).
Successful expansion of the signalling business
As a leading rail vehicle manufacturer, Stadler’s ambition is to help shape and drive forward the digitalisation of rail transport. In addition to its progress in offering vehicle-based signalling solutions, Stadler has expanded its signalling expertise on the infrastructure side. The sustainable digitalisation of the rail industry requires interaction between these two areas: intelligent railway lines can only develop their full potential if there are digitally equipped vehicles travelling on them. The first step was taken in November 2021 with the acquisition of BÄR Bahnsicherung AG (BÄR). Another milestone followed in December with the acquisition of BBR Verkehrstechnik GmbH (BBR). The two companies complement Stadler perfectly, as they are both leading suppliers of railway safety and signalling technology: BÄR so far only in Switzerland and BBR for many years internationally as well. The merger of the three companies forms an excellent basis for offering customers innovative signalling solutions from a single source – both on the vehicle and on the infrastructure side.
These acquisitions underline Stadler’s ambitions in the future-oriented signalling field. This brings the number of employees in the Signalling Division to just over 500. In order to actively shape the digitalisation of the railway industry and drive forward the sector as an innovation leader, Stadler is pooling its signalling expertise in a new Signalling Division led by Marc Trippel as of 1 January 2022.
Long-term financing secured at more favourable conditions
At the beginning of March 2022, Stadler obtained an early extension of a syndicated loan agreement with national and international banks, which was due to expire in the middle of the year. The loan is now valid for a further five years at improved and more flexible conditions. It mainly comprises a credit line of CHF 200 million and guarantee lines of CHF 2.0 billion. Stadler now has total guarantee lines of around CHF 8.0 billion at its disposal, of which approximately 50 percent are freely available and more than CHF 400 million are committed cash credit lines, which are currently undrawn. The recent closing demonstrates the confidence of Stadler’s long-standing bank partners in the company and its strategy.
Outlook
Stadler remains optimistic about Its core markets for the 2022 business year, even though the political situation, especially in the CIS region, is bringing increasing uncertainty to the economy and capital markets. Increasing urbanisation, the growing population in conurbations, climate protection and digitalisation are continuing to prompt greater demand for innovative, reliable and efficient mobility solutions.
Thanks to its strategic direction, Stadler believes that it is well positioned for the future. On the basis of the very pleasing order situation and the ongoing high demand, Stadler expects an order intake between CHF 5 billion and 6 billion for the current financial year. Assuming that the current supply chain situation, inflation and currency trends do not deteriorate further, Stadler anticipates revenue of between CHF 3.7 and 4.0 billion for the 2022 financial year and a stable EBIT margin. In order to provide the required capacities, Stadler is envisaging investments of around CHF 200 million in the current financial year. A positive free cash flow is targeted for this year.
The Board of Directors intends to put forward a proposal to the General Meeting for the payment of a dividend of CHF 90.0 million (CHF 0.90 per share) for the 2021 financial year, compared to CHF 85 million (CHF 0.85 per share) in the previous year. Due to the uncertainty about the development of the pandemic and the lack of planning certainty, the Board of Directors decided in February to hold the 2022 General Meeting without the physical presence of the shareholders.
Stadler remains committed to its continuous growth trajectory and medium-term financial targets with an EBIT margin of 8 to 9 percent. In view of the challenges caused by the pandemic over the last two years and the current tense global political situation, Stadler expects to achieve its medium-term financial targets with a delay of one to two years, rather than in the 2023 financial year, as originally planned.
The financial impact of the Ukraine-Russia conflict on Stadler cannot be assessed conclusively at the time of approval of the consolidated financial statements by the Board of Directors and is highly dependent on the further development of events. Stadler is constantly monitoring the situation and taking all possible measures to minimise any negative effects.
Further information on the 2021 results Peter Spuhler, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors and Group CEO a. i., and Raphael Widmer, Group CFO, will present the annual results today at 9:30 am at a press conference. Please register
here for the broadcast in German or English.
The annual report is available on our
website.
