Knorr-Bremse, the global market leader for braking and other systems for rail and commercial vehicles, today reported strong preliminary full-year 2019 results, with total revenues up 4.8% and reported EBITDA margin up 140bp to 19.2%.
“2019 was a successful year for us. We delivered on our capital market guidance and secured our market leadership. With the plant closure in Wülfrath and the exit from the Powertech business we took important measures to safeguard our profitability going forward”, said Bernd Eulitz, CEO of Knorr-Bremse AG. “In the fourth quarter, both our businesses CVS and RVS benefited from strong orders, which underlines the resilience of our business model in a challenging economic environment.”
Strong order intake underlines the resilient business model of Knorr-Bremse
With 7,066 mEUR and a book-to-bill ratio of 1.02, Knorr-Bremse’s order intake expanded by 0.9%. The company’s order book reached a new peak of 4,692 mEUR at the end of 2019, an increase of 2.8% (2018: 4,563 mEUR).
Dynamic revenue growth and continued profit growth
Full-year revenues increased by 4.8% to 6,937 mEUR (2018: 6,616 mEUR) and thereby outperformed both respective markets. Rail Vehicle Systems (RVS) grew by 5.6% to 3,656 mEUR (2018: 3,462 mEUR) vs. a rolling stock market growth of +2.6%. Commercial Vehicle Systems (CVS) grew by 3.8% to 3,280 mEUR (2018: 3,160mEUR), outgrowing global truck production rate of -4.5% significantly. Both RVS and CVS revenues benefited from a healthy aftermarket and strong support from the APAC region.
At Group level, Knorr-Bremse generated a reported EBITDA of 1,329 mEUR, an increase of 12.8% on 2018 (1,178 mEUR). This corresponds to a margin of 19.2%, significantly higher than 2018 (17.8%). Operating EBITDA, excluding restructuring costs and book profit from the sale and lease back transaction in Munich, but including IFRS 16 effects, amounted to 1,303 mEUR (2018: 1,204 mEUR) and an operating margin of 18.8% (2018: 18.4%) – well within the guidance corridor.
Group EBIT for 2019 came to 1,063 mEUR, up 9,3% yoy (2018: 972 mEUR) and corresponding to a margin of 15.3%, 60 bps over last years level at 14.7%. Operating EBIT margin reached 15.1%, after 15.6% in 2018.
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SOURCE: Knorr-Bremse
