MUNICH (dpa-AFX) - Persistently weak demand for construction and agricultural machinery is making the supplier Wacker Neuson more pessimistic for 2024. The SDax-listed company announced on Wednesday afternoon that dealer inventories and uncertainty about the economic outlook are high. "Contrary to forecasts at the beginning of the year, market demand is not recovering as expected," the Group said.

As a result, the company's management is now forecasting turnover of between 2.3 and 2.4 billion euros for 2024, instead of the previous forecast of 2.4 to 2.6 billion euros. Earnings before interest and taxes are expected to account for 6.0 to 7.0 percent of turnover. The previous target was 8.0 to 9.0 percent.

Based on preliminary figures, the company achieved a turnover of 611.7 million euros in the second quarter - a drop of 12.5 percent compared to the same period last year. Preliminary earnings before interest and taxes fell by almost half to 46.9 million euros. This results in a margin of 7.7 percent.

According to the press release, CEO Karl Tragl emphasized cost reductions in the weak market environment. Therefore, "an improvement in the margin compared to the previous quarter has already been achieved in the second quarter". "We will continue to use the coming months intensively to adjust our cost structures."

Wacker Neuson shares initially slumped by more than three percent to their lowest level since 2022, but then recovered. Most recently, they were still down 0.3 percent at EUR 14.94. It has thus lost around 18% in 2024.

The Group plans to publish its final figures on August 13, 2024./mis/he