FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Engine manufacturer MTU Aero Engines' increased confidence in its own profitability was well received on the stock market on Thursday. With a price increase of around five percent to approximately 275 euros, the shares took the lead in a weakening DAX. They also came ever closer to their previous record high from before the coronavirus pandemic.

After a better-than-expected quarter, the Munich-based company is more confident about the development of the margin in the current year. The Group now expects profitability adjusted for special effects to increase to around 13%. This would put the margin slightly above the 2023 level. MTU had previously expected a margin of more than 12 percent.

With a margin of 13 percent, the company is leaving the current market expectation of 12.4 percent behind, wrote analyst Philip Buller from Berenberg Bank. In view of a strong first half of the year, the new, higher forecast is still cautious. "The share remains our favorite in the commercial aviation business," Buller concluded.

The record high for MTU shares of just under 290 euros dates back to the beginning of 2020, i.e. before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. In spring 2020, the share price then temporarily fell below the EUR 100 mark due to the uncertainties caused by the pandemic. Since then, the share price has gradually recovered, with a particularly strong upward trend from fall 2023. Since then, the price has risen by 70%.

This year alone, the share price has risen by around 40 percent; only the shares of Siemens Energy and Rheinmetall have gained even more in the Dax.

MTU shares gained additional momentum when they overcame a technical resistance zone of 240 to 245 euros at the beginning of July. The share price still has a good 5 percent to go before reaching its record high./bek/zb/mis