CSG Founder Channels IPO Wealth Into Civilian Empire as Defense Arm Faces Short-Seller Heat and KNDS Pursuit

CSG founder Michal Strnad invests €3B in a personal investment platform while the defense stock nears its year low after a short-seller attack; analysts remain bullish with a €35 target.

While the Czechoslovak Group’s shares languish near their year low, founder Michal Strnad is embarking on an audacious personal venture that has little to do with tanks or artillery. The 33-year-old billionaire is deploying roughly €3 billion of his own equity from CSG’s recent IPO to build a standalone investment platform, targeting a war chest of up to €10 billion once leverage is applied. That would rank it among Europe’s largest family offices, and Strnad has already started spending: the portfolio includes a stake in Prague’s Four Seasons Hotel, a fertility clinic, local Ferrari dealerships, and football club Viktoria Pilsen. Talks with the PPF Group about potential co-investments are also under way.

The timing of Strnad’s civilian push is striking, because back at CSG the stock is under relentless pressure. After a 24% monthly slide, the shares changed hands at €16.27, not far from their yearly low of roughly €16.34. The trigger was a second critical report from short-seller Hunterbrook Media, which questioned the company’s ammunition production capacity, IPO transparency, and certain shareholder agreements. CSG has issued a second formal rebuttal, accusing Hunterbrook of selectively interpreting publicly available information to support a related short position. The group has cut off direct dialogue with the research house.

Amid the noise, CSG is pursuing a major strategic move on the corporate level. The defense group has submitted an all-cash offer to the founding families of German tank maker KNDS, targeting up to 50% of their stakes. KNDS builds the Leopard 2 battle tank and the Caesar artillery system, and the deal would represent a significant step in CSG’s European expansion. However, success is far from assured: market observers note that the German families are leaning toward a July IPO or a capital injection from the federal government instead, with KNDS valued at between €15 billion and €20 billion.

Analysts, for their part, remain undeterred by the stock’s slide. All nine covering CSG rate the shares a buy, with a consensus price target of €35.40, and JPMorgan sees the stock hitting €40. The bullish case got a boost in February when Moody’s upgraded CSG’s credit rating to Baa3, its first investment-grade rating, which lowers future financing costs and opens the door to institutional investors.

On the operational front, the group is delivering concrete results. In the first quarter, CSG fully repaid a €275 million receivable stemming from the sale of non-core businesses—Mobility, Perazzi, and Healthcare—before its IPO. The company is also ramping up capacity: new production lines in Slovakia will add 70,000 rounds of ammunition annually. Management has reiterated its medium-term ambitions, targeting up to €7.6 billion in revenue by 2026 with an adjusted operating margin of around 25%. For the current fiscal year, the forecast calls for billions in sales and an operating margin of roughly 24%.

All eyes are now on May 20, when CSG reports its first-quarter results for the first time as a listed company. The earnings release will be burdened by IPO costs, but investors expect concrete updates on capacity expansion in Slovakia, Spain, and Ukraine, as well as renewed backing of the full-year guidance. The call will also be an opportunity for executives to push back against the short-seller narrative with hard numbers.