HEIDELBERG (dpa-AFX) - Machinery manufacturer Heidelberger Druck wants to become more profitable in the medium term. "The new fiscal year will not be an easy one," company CEO Ludwin Monz said Wednesday in an interview with journalists. He added that the company continues to be affected by cost increases, which it will have to deal with.

Sales and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda margin) for the current year are expected to roughly match last year's figures of just over 2.43 billion euros and 7.2 percent, respectively. This was the first time the SDax group had issued a forecast for fiscal 2023/24, which runs until the end of March. At the same time, the Management Board announced cost-cutting measures.

The shares nevertheless came under pressure and fell by a good four percent to 1.629 euros.

The targeted margin is a stable value, although it is still at a low level, Monz said. "We want to increase the level, become better in the medium term," he added. A program to this end has been initiated, he said. He was not yet able to give details of possible measures, said the company boss.

The main aim of the program is to enable Heidelberger Druck to finance investments in the future itself, Monz stressed. In its most important area of activity, printing, which accounted for 97 percent of business in the past financial year, the Group intends to remain the technology leader. Management has identified growth opportunities in packaging and digital printing. The Group CEO also did not rule out acquisitions.

Monz was also confident about his newer business units. "We continue to believe in electromobility," the manager emphasized. It is a growth market. The company's business with wall charging stations for electric vehicles had declined significantly in the past fiscal year. However, the KfW demand for wall boxes had expired and there had also been delivery problems with electric vehicles.

However, electromobility remains a market of the future. Monz referred to the EU's plans to convert all private transport to electric vehicles by 2035. This would have to be accompanied by growth in charging technology. This is the kind of business the company is looking for, he said. Heidelberger Druck will not stop at charging technology, however.

Following a recent weaker performance in China, Monz expects the situation to stabilize in the current financial year. The People's Republic is an important market for Heidelberger Druck, he said. There is a certain sense of optimism, the Chinese market is recovering, and the company is feeling this in its figures. But one should not expect miracles, the country first has to recover from the Covid crisis. But China is also embedded in the global economic and geopolitical uncertainties. There will therefore be stabilization, but not disproportionate growth. Heidelberg has its own production sites in China and produces for the local market.

In the past financial year, Heidelberger Druck increased Group sales by 12 percent year-on-year to a good 2.4 billion Euro, the company announced on Wednesday when it presented its final annual figures. The operating margin rose from 7.3 to 8.6 percent. However, the company also benefited from disposals of parts of its business. The bottom line was a profit of 91 million euros, up from 33 million euros a year earlier./mne/tav/mis