Jungheinrich Approaches Virtual Annual General Meeting with Confidence

Jungheinrich was able to present a solid result for the year 2019 with over 4 billion euros in sales at its first virtual annual general meeting. The efficiency enhancement program initiated last year is taking effect. Instead of a traditional meal for shareholders, Jungheinrich used the remaining budget for a forklift donation to the Hamburger Tafel.

(Hamburg) “Jungheinrich will emerge stronger from the Corona crisis,” said Dr. Lars Brzoska, CEO of Jungheinrich AG, at the company’s annual general meeting. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the shareholders’ meeting took place virtually for the first time. Shareholders of Jungheinrich AG were able to follow the event live on the internet from anywhere in the world.

Solid Year 2019

Jungheinrich looks back on a solid year 2019. Despite an economic downturn in the second half of the year, the company was able to achieve sales of over 4 billion euros for the first time. “This is a milestone in Jungheinrich’s history,” said Brzoska. Although the company had to record one-time burdens on earnings, Jungheinrich achieved an EBIT of 263 million euros. The net income after taxes was increased compared to 2018, cash flow from operating activities was significantly increased to 345 million euros, and net debt was substantially reduced.

Efficiency Enhancement Program

Brzoska explained that the Jungheinrich board had increasingly perceived signs of an impending recession since late summer 2019. “It became increasingly clear to us during the second half of 2019 that the economic boom of recent years was over,” he said. Against this backdrop, Jungheinrich developed a comprehensive efficiency enhancement and risk mitigation program, making the company resilient early on. These measures benefited the company when the Covid-19 pandemic plunged the global economy into an unprecedented crisis at the beginning of this year. “Thanks to the measures we took, we were able to respond very quickly to the new, intensified situation and ensure the company’s operational capability,” said Brzoska.

Thanks to Employees

The CEO took the opportunity at the annual general meeting to thank Jungheinrich employees for their commitment during the Covid-19 pandemic. “The Jungheinrich workforce has shown character as a team in the crisis and has done excellent work under difficult conditions,” said Brzoska. He specifically highlighted the employees who had no opportunity to work from home.

Intralogistics is Systemically Relevant

Brzoska emphasized in his speech the systemic relevance of intralogistics for the supply of the community, especially during the Corona crisis: “We contribute to the supply of people and companies and have helped ensure during the crisis that the economy in Germany, Europe, and the world does not come to a standstill. We are proud of that.” Without Jungheinrich’s vehicles, system solutions, and services, there would be significant emptiness on supermarket shelves today.

First Half of 2020

On August 11, Jungheinrich AG announced its figures for the first half of 2020. Orders for new vehicles were significantly below the previous year’s level in the first half of 2020 due to the crisis, with 53.9 thousand vehicles. The value of incoming orders for the Jungheinrich Group also fell short of the previous year at 1.81 billion euros. Sales decreased by 7.9 percent to 1.801 billion euros. Nevertheless, the company achieved an EBIT of 95 million euros and an EBIT margin of 5.3 percent. “This is a very good result for a crisis half-year like this,” explained Brzoska.

Healthy Balance Sheet Structure

Cash flow from operating activities reached approximately 201 million euros from January to June 2020, doubling compared to the previous year. Furthermore, despite the crisis, Jungheinrich managed to reduce its net debt from 172 million euros at the end of 2019 to 36 million euros. This is a reduction of 136 million euros. At the same time, Jungheinrich has a very healthy balance sheet structure and a solid liquidity reserve.Stable Dividend PolicyAgainst this backdrop, the annual general meeting approved the Jungheinrich board’s proposal to continue the company’s stable dividend policy this year, maintaining the dividend amount of 0.46 euros per ordinary share and 0.48 euros per preferred share, as already indicated in the 2019 annual report.ForecastOn July 22, Jungheinrich published a new forecast for the year 2020. The company expects incoming orders to be between 3.4 billion euros and 3.6 billion euros. The group revenue is also expected to be within a range of 3.4 billion euros to 3.6 billion euros. The EBIT (earnings before financial results and income taxes) is currently estimated to be between 130 million euros and 180 million euros in 2020. The EBIT margin is expected to be in a range of 3.8 percent to 5.0 percent. Brzoska said: “By our decisive response to the first signs of crisis, we have set the course for a continued successful future. We can say today that Jungheinrich has so far coped well with the largest global economic crisis in decades, given the circumstances. This gives us confidence for the future.”

New Corporate Strategy

For the fourth quarter of 2020, Brzoska announced the introduction of a new corporate strategy. In it, Jungheinrich will address the challenges of a changing market and competitive environment, but will also actively seize the opportunities arising from it. The company will focus on the areas of digitalization, automation, efficiency, energy systems, sustainability, and expanding its global footprint. “Our goal is to further expand our global market position and sustainably create value for all our stakeholders,” explained Brzoska.

Forklift Donation to Hamburger Tafel e.V.

Traditionally, Jungheinrich provides a meal for its shareholders at the end of the annual general meeting. Since the event was purely virtual this time, this was not possible this year. Therefore, Jungheinrich is now using this meal budget to support those who are particularly short on money for food during this extraordinary time and is donating a forklift to Hamburger Tafel e.V. Upon request, the Tafel wishes for a pallet truck of the type EJC 220, which is currently being prepared at the Jungheinrich plant in Dresden and will be delivered shortly. “We are pleased to be able to support such a great social institution in this way,” said Brzoska.
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