OHB’s Bumpy Ride: Stalled Placement Sends Shares Tumbling Despite Robust Results and a Rocket Test on the Horizon

OHB's stock plunged nearly 16% after a planned billion-euro equity placement was halted. Despite record orders and rising profits, financing doubts and a tight free float fuel volatility.

A dramatic reversal of fortune gripped OHB on 27 May 2026 when news that a planned billion-euro equity placement had been halted sent the stock crashing nearly 16% intraday. The sell?off wiped out gains built during a strong operational run, laying bare the tension between the company’s solid underlying performance and the immediate financing challenges that have unsettled the market.

The shelved transaction was designed to be a turning point for the Bremen?based space and defence group. Investment firm KKR, which owns roughly 29% of OHB, intended to place around 20% of its stake, with a syndicate now expanded to seven banks – Berenberg and Commerzbank joining Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Jefferies and UniCredit. The ultimate goal was to lift the free float from its wafer?thin 5.68% of the 19.15 million shares to about 20% over the medium term, improving liquidity and funding a major scale?up in capacity for large defence and constellation projects.

Yet the pause has thrown fresh doubt on how OHB will finance its next growth phase. Despite the setback, the first?quarter numbers tell a far more upbeat story. Total performance rose 15% to €279.3 million, adjusted EBITDA jumped 37% to €27.3 million, and net profit more than doubled to €9.9 million (from €3.7 million a year ago). Earnings per share surged 165% to €0.52. The order backlog hit an all?time high of €3.35 billion at the end of March – a 45% increase year?on?year, driven mainly by ESA programmes and expanding defence budgets.

That tight free float – just 5.68% of shares available for trading – has long amplified every piece of news. The placement was expected to ease that bottleneck, but its postponement only heightens volatility. KKR’s intended selldown remains on the table, but management now faces the task of convincing investors that alternative funding routes exist without derailing the company’s trajectory.

On the operational front, OHB is counting on a landmark event in July. Its rocket subsidiary, Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA), has applied for a launch window starting 1 July 2026 for the first test flight of the RFA ONE vehicle from the SaxaVord spaceport in Scotland. The rocket is slated to carry seven satellites for various organisations, coordinated by the German Aerospace Centre (DLR). Engine tests of the Helix motors are already under way in Kiruna, and a flight vehicle stands ready in the integration hall. Series production is planned from 2028, with a medium?term capacity of up to 25 launches per year. While RFA is consolidated at equity – meaning its revenues won’t appear in OHB’s core guidance – a successful first flight would validate the group’s vertical?integration strategy and open a new commercial revenue stream.

Two key dates now come into focus. On 8 June, the virtual annual general meeting will force the board to lay out a concrete financing plan and discuss a new share?option programme for executives and staff. Just days later, the expected SpaceX initial public offering around mid?June could provide a sector?wide valuation uplift – CEO Marco Fuchs has described the current environment as a “gold?rush era” for space. Then, on 1 July, the RFA ONE test launch will either cement or undermine the strategic narrative. Finally, second?quarter figures on 6 August will show whether the record backlog is translating into sustained earnings momentum.

For OHB, the next eight weeks will determine whether operational strength can overpower the funding overhang – or whether the market’s jitters will persist until the equity deal gets back on track.