• Consolidated revenue down 6.6% to €975.1 million, EBIT down to €35.0 million
• Supply chain issues and delayed vehicle deliveries check year-end rally
• The North America sales region and the Preventive fire protection segment increased their business volumes
• Order intake at €1,064.3m back to the very high pre-crisis level
• Considerable reduction in commercial working capital, operating cash flow reaches a new record of 145.8 million euros
• Dividend proposal of €0.90 per share takes into account lower earnings

In 2021, the Rosenbauer Group achieved a turnover of 975.1 million euros – a decrease compared to the previous record year (2020: 1,044.2 million euros). The reasons for this decline were supply chain issues and production disruptions, which emerged from the middle of the year and escalated significantly in the following months. Due to late vehicle deliveries and the new lockdown in Austria in December, revenues were deferred beyond the start of the year. EBIT amounted to only EUR 35.0 million (2020: EUR 57.7 million) due to lower gross profit. The EBIT margin amounted to 3.6% (2020: 5.5%).

Revenues and operating results

Against the backdrop of a general economic recovery, the global firefighting industry experienced a sideways trend during the year under review. At the same time, the supply of materials and parts to the industry successively deteriorated in the second half of the year due to the surprisingly rapid recovery of the global economy.

These challenging conditions dampened the Rosenbauer Group’s significant year-end rally, and the Group recorded lower revenues in four of its six sales regions. The NOMA zone increased its deliveries in this environment and the Preventive Fire Protection segment also increased its volume of business.

Net of cost of sales, gross margin was €156.5 million (2020: €180.2 million), down 13% year-on-year . EBIT therefore amounted to 35.0 million euros (2020: 57.7 million euros), the bulk of which, namely 22.1 million euros, was generated in the fourth quarter.

The financial result of € -6.2 million was at the level of the previous year (2020: € -6.4 million). Earnings before tax (EBT) amounted to EUR 28.9 million in the reporting period (2020: EUR 51.3 million).

In the past year, the Rosenbauer Group recorded incoming orders of 1,064.3 million euros, which represents a return to the very high level before the crisis (2020: 1,007.7 million euro). Five of the six sales regions recorded growth. The APAC region recorded the strongest relative growth.

Demand has consistently exceeded expectations throughout the year. For example, in May the Swedish Armed Forces accepted a bid for 22 ARFF vehicles, and in August the Bundeswehr placed an order for 76 high-capacity forest firefighting vehicles with all-terrain capability. The backlog of €1,145.2 million as of December 31, 2021 (2020: €1,072.1 million) is significantly higher than the consolidated revenue for the year.

Financial position and net assets

The financial situation of the Rosenbauer Group remains solid. Total assets decreased compared to the previous year and amounted to €891.6 million as of December 31, 2021 (2020: €911.2 million).

Non-current assets increased significantly and amounted to €258.8 million at the end of the year (2020: €237.5 million). Rights of use, which are also recognized as non-current assets since 2019 due to IFRS 16 “Leases”, increased to €35.2 million (2020: €32.2 million) . Current assets amounted to €632.8 million (2020: €673.7 million).

Equity amounted to €225.1 million at the end of the year (2020: €227.2 million) and the equity ratio increased slightly to 25.2% (2020: 24 .9%) due to the decline in total assets.

In the summer of 2020, the Rosenbauer Group launched a cash conversion cycle optimization project, which aims to reduce trading working capital. At the end of 2021, commercial working capital had improved to €345.4 million (2020: €421.1 million). This decrease is mainly due to a significant reduction in trade receivables, which fell to €159.0 million (2020: €236.7 million). Net cash flow from operating activities increased to a new all-time high of €145.8 million in 2021 (2020: €96.4 million).

Interest-bearing current debts rose from 56.4 million euros to 72.5 million euros in the year under review.

Net debt decreased to €203.6 million (2020: €289.3 million) and the debt ratio improved to 90.4% (2020: 127.4%).

Dividend

The Rosenbauer Group follows a sustainable and growth-oriented dividend policy, consistent with business performance. Given the decline in results, the Management Board and the Supervisory Board are proposing to the General Meeting a dividend of €0.90 (2020: €1.50) per share for 2021. Consequently, the distribution volume for 6 .8 million shares without par value will be €6.1 million (2020: €10.2 million). Based on the closing price of €46.4, this corresponds to a dividend yield of 1.9% (2020: 4.1%).

Outlook

Based on the global economic forecast and our own industry observations, the global firefighting industry is expected to grow again in 2022. Especially in the developed economies of North America and Europe, the willingness to invest appears uninterrupted despite the COVID-19 pandemic, and corresponding budgetary resources for preventative firefighting and disaster protection technologies will continue to be made available. On the other hand, the poor situation of the sector in the Asian firefighting markets will improve only slightly during the current year. Due to import restrictions, the firefighting market in China is still difficult to enter. Demand in Middle Eastern countries depends on continued oil price developments, which have risen sharply in recent times. At the same time, volatility remains elevated due to continued supply chain disruptions and pressure in international energy and commodity markets due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In order to secure its results objective and limit persistent risks, a performance improvement program has been launched on all the production sites concerned. Based on a strong order book, the management of the Rosenbauer Group expects sales of more than one billion euros in 2022, with an EBIT margin at the level of the previous year.

To the 2021 Annual Report microsite