Stabilus SE: Adjusted EBIT margin remained stable in Q2 2026 despite weakness in the automotive business and significant currency effects

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Stabilus SE: Adjusted EBIT margin remained stable in Q2 2026 despite weakness in the automotive business and significant currency effects

• Revenue of €304.9 million in Q2 FY2026 (Q2 FY2025: €338.0 million), with currency effects accounting for around one-third of the decline

• Adjusted EBIT^[1] in Q2 at €34.1 million (Q2 FY2025: €37.7 million). Stable year-on-year margin of 11.2% (Q2 FY2025: 11.2%). Strict cost discipline is having an effect, R&D and SG&A expenses were reduced by €7.6 million in Q2 FY2026

• Adjusted FCF^[1] at €4.1 million (Q2 FY2025: €18.1 million)

• Forecast confirmed for fiscal year 2026: revenue of €1.1 billion to €1.3 billion, adjusted EBIT^[1] margin of 10% to 12% and adjusted FCF^[1] of €80 million to €110 million

Koblenz, May 4, 2026 – Stabilus SE (WKN: STAB1L, ISIN: DE000STAB1L8), one of the world's leading suppliers of motion control solutions for a wide range of industries, closed the second quarter of fiscal 2026 (ending March 31, 2026) with a stable adjusted EBIT margin of 11.2%, despite challenging market developments and significant currency effects. Business activity in the EMEA region remained steady, whereas revenue declined in the APAC region, predominantly due to the weak automotive economy. The Americas region was also affected by the weak automotive business and significant currency effects. Despite lower revenue, ongoing cost reductions and efficiency improvements led to a strong margin increase in APAC and a modest rise in EMEA. In contrast, profitability decreased in the Americas compared to the same quarter last year. However, both gross margin and adjusted EBIT margin remained unchanged in Q2 FY2026, matching last year's levels. R&D, selling, general and administrative expenses were reduced by €7.6 million in Q2 FY2026.

During the second quarter of fiscal 2026, Stabilus reported consolidated revenue of €304.9 million (Q2 FY2025: €338.0 million) – a decrease of 9.8% year-on-year. This drop was largely driven by significant negative currency effects amounting to 3.2%, mainly caused by a weaker US dollar and Chinese yuan. The organic revenue decline was thus 6.6%.

Dr. Michael Büchsner, CEO of Stabilus, said: “Although we couldn't avoid the ongoing challenges in the automotive market, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, our cost-cutting and efficiency initiatives are starting to make a difference. We've managed not only to significantly limit the drop in margins but also to improve them in certain markets. The bundling of our production will also make an important contribution to this in the future – for example at the recently opened site in Suzhou in China, where we will bring together several brands under one roof and realize additional efficiency gains and operational synergies in the future."

Andreas Jaeger, CFO of Stabilus, added: "The fact that we were able to increase our margin, especially in the APAC region, but also in EMEA, despite a particularly challenging environment, shows that we are on the right track with our transformation program and we will continue to maintain a disciplined focus on our costs."

Stable EMEA business and margin improvement in Q2 FY2026

In the EMEA region, Stabilus was able to keep revenue stable at €143.3 million (Q2 FY2025: €144.1 million) and improve its adjusted EBIT margin by 0.9 percentage points to 11.2% (Q2 FY2025: 10.3%). In contrast, business performance in the Americas was adversely impacted primarily by the depreciation of the US dollar, resulting in an 11.5% revenue decline to €113.0 million (Q2 FY2025: €127.7 million) and a lower adjusted EBIT margin of 8.8% (Q2 FY2025: 11.5%). The decrease in margin for this region was mainly attributable to increased personnel expenses. The APAC region remained the most challenging market with respect to revenue, reporting a significant year-over-year decrease of 26.6% to €48.6 million (Q2 FY2025: €66.2 million). Nevertheless, the region's margin improved markedly to 16.7% (Q2 FY2025: 12.2%) as a result of sustained cost management and efficiency initiatives.

By business unit, in Q2 FY2026, Stabilus reported an 18.6% decrease in revenue to €79.6 million for Automotive Powerise (Q2 FY2025: €97.8 million) and a 12.0% reduction to €74.1 million for Automotive Gas Spring (Q2 FY2025: €84.2 million). Industrial Components saw a modest increase of 0.2%, reaching €109.5 million (Q2 FY2025: €109.3 million). The Industrial Automation segment, which includes Destaco, experienced a 10.7% decline in revenue to €41.7 million (Q2 FY2025: €46.7 million). The Industrial segment demonstrated greater resilience in organic revenue development, achieving a 2% increase, whereas the Automotive division recorded a 14% decline.

Transformation program is on track, and the first savings targets have been met

The transformation program that began last year is proceeding completely according to plan. During the first half of fiscal year 2026, Stabilus reduced its R&D, selling and general administrative expenses, resulting in savings of €14.3 million. The company anticipates saving about €19 million in the 2027 fiscal year, with annual savings increasing to roughly €32 million from 2028 onward.

Adjusted EBIT margin of 11.2% in second quarter 2026

Adjusted operating profit (adjusted EBIT^[1]) amounted to €34.1 million in Q2 FY2026, a decrease compared to the previous year (Q2 FY2025: €37.7 million). The adjusted EBIT margin, on the other hand, was 11.2%, at exactly the same level as in the same quarter of the previous year (Q2 FY2025: 11.2%).

In Q2 FY2026, profit was €9.3 million, compared to €11.2 million in the same period of the previous year, while adjusted FCF^[1] fell significantly to €4.1 million  (Q2 FY2025: € 18.1 million). The lower adjusted FCF was mainly due to an increase in net working capital in the second quarter as a result of a recent high revenue momentum in March 2026 and the associated build-up of receivables.

New production site in Suzhou, China, enables additional efficiency gains

With the new production site in Suzhou, which combines several group brands under one roof, Stabilus continues to consistently pursue its strategy of serving its customers on-site and implementing their individual needs quickly and locally. At the same time, bundling the production of different brands at one location creates significant efficiency gains and leverages additional synergies – for example through optimized capacity utilization, bundled processes and shorter distances.

Forecast for fiscal 2026 confirmed

Stabilus confirms its forecast for the full fiscal year 2026 and continues to expect revenue of €1.1 billion to €1.3 billion, an adjusted EBIT^[1] margin in the range of 10% to 12% as well as an adjusted FCF^[1] of €80 million to €110 million.

The interim report H1 FY2026 can be downloaded from the company’s website at ir.stabilus.com.

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^[1] Cf. definition/calculation of KPI’s adjusted EBIT and adjusted FCF in the interim report H1 FY2026, pages 21 ff. and 26 ff., that can be downloaded from the company's website at ir.stabilus.com.

Investor contact:
Andreas Schröder
Tel.: +49 261 8900 8198
E-Mail: anschroeder@stabilus.com
Web: ir.stabilus.com

Press contact:
Peter Steiner
Tel.: +49 69 794090 27
E-Mail: Peter.Steiner@charlesbarker.de
Charles Barker Corporate Communications

About Stabilus

Stabilus is one of the world's leading providers of motion control solutions for a wide range of industries including mobility, industrial machinery, automation, energy, construction, health, leisure and furniture. Stabilus offers reliable and innovative solutions that enable, enhance and automate precise movement, positioning, opening, closing, lifting, lowering and adjusting actions. The Group, which has its headquarters in Koblenz, has a global production and distribution network with more than seven thousand employees worldwide and generated revenues of €1.3 billion in the 2025 fiscal year. Stabilus SE is listed in the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and is included in the SDAX index. For more information, see group.stabilus.com and ir.stabilus.com.

Important Notice

This press release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Stabilus Group management and other information currently available to Stabilus. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here.