OHB SE Poised for Major Contract Wins and Growth Milestones

OHB SE faces a critical period with major defense bids and strong space orders. The company reports surging output and backlog, aiming for over €2B revenue by 2028.

The coming weeks are set to be pivotal for European aerospace and technology group OHB SE. A confluence of potential major defense contracts, freshly secured space mission deals, and an upgraded growth trajectory are coming to a head just ahead of the audited 2025 annual report. This blend of significant opportunity and the pressure to demonstrate execution makes the upcoming period critical for the company. The key question for investors is whether OHB can translate its robust order growth into sustained profitability and strong cash generation.

Financial Performance and Elevated Targets

Operationally, OHB has reported strong preliminary figures for the first nine months of 2025. Group output reached 863.5 million euros, marking a 21% increase year-over-year. EBITDA climbed to 75.5 million euros, up from 62.4 million euros in the prior year period. The company's order intake surged by 24% to approximately 2.1 billion euros, while its firm order backlog expanded significantly by 47% to over 3.1 billion euros.

Management has provided guidance for full-year 2025, anticipating total output of 1.2 billion euros with an EBITDA margin of 9%. Furthermore, medium-term targets have been raised. The company now aims for 1.4 billion euros in output with an 11% EBITDA margin in 2026, 1.7 billion euros with a 12% margin in 2027, and is targeting over 2.0 billion euros from 2028 onward. OHB cites rising budgets from the European Space Agency (ESA), the EU, and national customers—with the defense market gaining increasing importance—as primary growth drivers.

Defense Sector Focus: The SATCOMBw Stage 4 Opportunity

A central near-term opportunity is the "SATCOMBw Stage 4" project, a planned satellite network for the German Bundeswehr with estimated costs reaching up to 10 billion euros. Reports from Bloomberg indicate that a joint bid involving Airbus Defence and Space, Rheinmetall, and OHB is under consideration. Airbus has separately confirmed talks with the German Defense Ministry.

The project envisions a constellation of 100 to 200 low Earth orbit satellites to provide global connectivity for the Bundeswehr, with the goal of achieving sovereign satellite communication independent of US systems by 2029.

In the proposed partnership structure, Rheinmetall would act as the systems integrator handling military integration, while OHB would be responsible for satellite manufacturing and engineering. OHB has already taken steps to build capacity for such a project, acquiring a facility in Schöneck (Saxony) in October 2025 as a potential base for serial production.

Competition remains a factor, however. The announced merger of the space divisions of Airbus, Thales, and Leonardo is forming a potentially large European rival in the sector.

Civil Space Momentum: RAMSES Mission Contract Signed

Alongside defense, the civil space division is receiving a boost. On February 10, ESA signed an 81.2 million euro contract with OHB Italia for the development of the RAMSES (Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety) mission. This agreement initiates the construction, assembly, and testing phase.

This latest contract builds upon a prior agreement for preparatory work signed in October 2024, bringing the total mission value to roughly 150 million euros. OHB Italia is serving as the prime contractor, supported by OHB System and GMV. The RAMSES spacecraft is scheduled for launch in 2028 to rendezvous with the asteroid Apophis before its close Earth flyby on April 13, 2029.

Ariane 6 Contribution and Integration of MT Aerospace

Another growth component is MT Aerospace. Following the successful inaugural commercial launch of the Ariane 6 rocket on February 12, this OHB subsidiary is supplying tanks and structural components, holding a ten percent workshare in the program. As OHB became the full owner of MT Aerospace in October 2025, all revenues from the production ramp-up now flow entirely into the group's consolidated accounts.

That first launch also marked the beginning of a major commercial contract for Arianespace: 18 firm bookings for Amazon's Project Kuiper satellite constellation.

Upcoming Catalyst: The Audited 2025 Annual Report

All eyes are now on OHB's balance sheet press conference scheduled for March 19, where the audited consolidated financial statements for 2025 will be presented in detail. This report will be scrutinized to see if the strong order momentum is already aligning with the projected 9% EBITDA margin for 2025. A key focus will be on how the company's substantial project pipeline and the necessary related investments are impacting its liquidity position, and how this is reflected in the final audited figures.