Rheinmetall's Order Pipeline Humming as Berenberg Sticks With €1,600 Target

Rheinmetall shares slid 2.0% to €951.50, down 37% this year, as Berenberg reiterated its Buy rating with a €1,600 price target.

Rheinmetall shares came under pressure in Frankfurt on Tuesday, sliding 2.0% to €951.50 from Monday's close of €971.00, with traders unable to point to any company-specific trigger behind the morning weakness. The pullback extends a bruising stretch for the Düsseldorf-based defense group, whose stock has now shed 37% since the start of the year — a decline that market participants have largely attributed to profit-taking across the European defense sector rather than to any deterioration in the business itself.

The sector-wide jitters were set off by media reports suggesting possible diplomatic movement toward negotiations in the Ukraine war, which prompted investors to lock in gains after months of strong performance across defense names. Rheinmetall declined to comment on the broader market moves.

Berenberg Doubles Down on Its Bull Case

Against that unsettled trading backdrop, Berenberg has kept its nerve. The Hamburg-based research house reiterated its "Buy" rating on Rheinmetall with a €1,600 price target, with analyst Chris Armstrong pointing to sustained fiscal-policy momentum and rising export demand as the pillars of his thesis. Armstrong places Rheinmetall alongside Renk and OHB among his top picks in the aerospace, space and defense sector, arguing that all three stand to benefit disproportionately from expanding government defense budgets.

The bullish call was echoed elsewhere on the sell side. On 21 September, MWB Research lifted its stance on the stock from "Sell" to "Hold" — a signal that even previously skeptical observers are taking a closer look at the medium-term trajectory of defense demand despite the recent volatility.

Munitions Order Lands in the Third Quarter

On the operational front, Rheinmetall has continued to convert that demand into signed business. The group booked a further large munitions contract this month, with an order volume in the low triple-digit millions of euros. The award falls within the third quarter of 2026, and production of the shells was already underway at the time of publication, with delivery to the customer scheduled for completion by 2027.

The munitions win is not the only fresh project on Rheinmetall's books. Its naval arm, Rheinmetall Naval Systems, has been contracted to carry out maintenance and repair work on four new LNG-powered customs vessels.

Technology and Development Work Across Europe

Beyond the order intake, Rheinmetall is pushing ahead with a series of technology and development initiatives. State funding of roughly €1.5 million is flowing to the NanoLink project run by subsidiary Pierburg Pump Technology. At its Hartha site in Saxony, the company is planning total investments of more than €4.4 million in production processes for NanoLam capacitors.

Rheinmetall also put networked unmanned systems through their paces at NATO's REPMUS26 exercise in Portugal, testing them for the protection of maritime infrastructure. A containerized system is serving the German Navy as a deployable solution in that effort.

The international business continues to notch up milestones for ongoing armament programs as well. At its UK site in Telford, Rheinmetall UK reported the commissioning of a new vibration testing facility, which is currently supporting development of the Challenger 3 main battle tank.