Heidelberg Druck's Turnaround Clock Is Ticking as Losses Deepen and a New CFO Takes Over

Heidelberger Druck confirms guidance despite Q1 EBITDA slump to €1M; new CFO Burkhard takes over as battery venture faces timing risks.

The machinery maker's transformation into a battery-technology play is facing its most demanding stretch yet. Heidelberger Druckmaschinen has confirmed its full-year guidance despite a first quarter that saw adjusted EBITDA collapse to just €1 million from €20 million a year earlier, with a net loss of €32 million weighing on the balance sheet.

The numbers landed as the company prepares to hand its finance function to a new chief. Christoph Burkhard, 62, takes over as CFO on October 1, succeeding Volker Herdin, who retires at the end of September after overseeing the transition. Burkhard's remit covers finance, controlling, investor relations, M&A, accounting, legal, tax and information security — a broad portfolio that arrives at a moment when shareholders are scrutinizing cash flow and cost discipline more closely than ever.

A Quarter That Tests Patience

Revenue for the April-to-June period slipped 13 percent to €404 million. Growth in China, the UK and Brazil was offset by declines across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Order intake fell nearly 4 percent to €537 million, though Warburg Research, which reaffirmed its "Buy" rating and €1.80 price target on August 19, characterized the bookings performance as respectable given the seasonal softness typical of the first quarter.

Management's decision to hold its annual targets — stable group revenue of around €2.3 billion and a meaningful improvement in adjusted EBITDA margin — looks ambitious against that backdrop. Analysts interpret the stance as a signal that the cost and margin levers are expected to bite harder in the second half, even if the opening quarter offers little visible evidence of that trajectory.

The Battery Bet and the Clock on Its Back

The strategic narrative rests on diversification beyond the core press business. A framework agreement signed with PHENOGY in July positions subsidiary HD Advanced Technologies to manufacture energy storage systems at scale, with a planned joint venture for cell production still in preparation. The technology centers on sodium-ion batteries, which avoid lithium and cobalt entirely — a potential niche for stationary industrial storage and a platform that promises greater independence from non-European supply chains.

The question investors keep asking is one of timing. Can the PHENOGY partnership, alongside the ONBERG defense-technology activities and the recently acquired manroland-sheetfed lifecycle and POLAR production businesses, generate enough revenue to offset the advertising-print weakness before the investment burden of the new divisions strains the balance sheet further? The industrial cell production process — printing-based manufacturing of batteries — remains technologically demanding and at an early planning stage, with no guarantee the joint venture will succeed.

Chart Levels That Matter

The share price has fallen 29 percent since the start of the year, and the 12-month decline stands at 31 percent, placing Heidelberg Druck among the weaker performers in the industrial sector. On Wednesday, the stock slipped 2.0 percent to €1.41.

There are modest signs of stabilization. At €1.44, the shares trade just above their 50-day moving average of €1.42, a tentative technical signal. The more consequential level sits higher: the 200-day average at €1.60, still roughly 10 percent above the current price. A sustained break above that threshold could open the path toward the €1.80 analyst target. Below it, the risk of another test of the 52-week low at €1.29 remains elevated.

What Comes Next

Two milestones will shape the near-term narrative: official updates on the battery joint venture's formation and the trajectory of order intake in the Print & Packaging segment. For Burkhard, the task is straightforward in outline, if not in execution — demonstrate that bookings are stabilizing and that the operating margin can climb from its current depressed level. The next quarterly report will offer the first real evidence of whether the confirmed guidance is grounded in operational reality or merely an expression of intent.