The main reason for this was extensive new orders from abroad, partly from start-up companies, which came in during the second half of the year. Thus, the Swabian machine tool and automation specialist was able to more than compensate for the persistently weak domestic demand. Overall, HERMLE's order intake in 2025 increased by 5.9% to €483.8 million (previous year: €456.2 million). New orders from abroad rose by 19.1% to €347.4 million (previous year: €291.1 million), while domestic orders fell by 17.4% to €136.4 million (previous year: €165.1 million). The order backlog amounted to €90.6 million as of December 31, 2025 (previous year: €98.7 million).
Since the new projects were completed by the end of 2025, HERMLE's group revenue developed significantly better than expected at the beginning of the year, amounting to €491.9 million, which is 0.7% above the comparison figure for 2024 of €487.9 million. Foreign revenues increased by 13.9% to €351.4 million (previous year: €308.5 million), while domestic revenue decreased by 21.7% to €140.5 million (previous year: €179.4 million). The export ratio increased to 71.4% (previous year: 63.2%). In addition to the increased foreign business, HERMLE also benefited from a growing service revenue, which expanded due to the increasing share of complex automation solutions installed at customers.
Thanks to the rapid delivery of large orders from abroad, HERMLE's capacities were well utilized at times during the second half of the year. Aside from this temporary peak, it was again necessary to resort to downtime and short-time work in the remaining months. Further burdens on results resulted from increased price and competitive pressure, high personnel and energy costs, currency shifts, and bureaucratic additional efforts. Therefore, the operating result for the group was significantly below the previous year's figure of €85.3 million, at €69.2 million, but exceeded not only the forecast from the beginning of the year but also the upwardly revised expectation from November due to better utilization and value creation in the last weeks of the year.
The pre-tax result of the HERMLE group amounted to €71.0 million in the past financial year (previous year: €89.0 million), resulting in a reduced but still satisfactory gross revenue margin of 14.4% considering the circumstances (previous year: 18.2%). The group surplus was €51.4 million (previous year: €65.9 million).
The individual company HERMLE AG achieved a net profit of €52.8 million in 2025 (previous year: €66.2 million), resulting in a balance sheet profit of €104.8 million (previous year: €107.1 million). The board and supervisory board will propose to the annual general meeting to distribute a dividend of €9.50 per ordinary share and €9.55 per preferred share (previous year: €11.00 and €11.05). Based on the year-end price for 2025, this would result in a dividend yield of 5.8% for preferred shareholders.
The financial and asset situation of the HERMLE group remained solid: As of the end of December 2025, the company had liquid assets of €81.3 million (previous year: €107.4 million) and reported an equity ratio of 72.5% (previous year: 74.1%). The operating cash flow for the reporting year was €67.6 million (previous year: €80.7 million), significantly exceeding investments in tangible and intangible assets of €24.1 million (previous year: €51.3 million). The focus of investment activity was the establishment of a new application center at the company's headquarters in Gosheim, which will include a cafeteria.
The new building is expected to open in 2027 and will also house the HERMLE in-house exhibition. At this year's event, which took place last week with great visitor interest, the company showcased innovative solutions from the areas of complete machining, automation, and digitalization, which also form the focus of R&D activities. Recent developments include additional machining centers of Generation 2 (GEN2), the handling system HS flex hybrid, the robot system RS 2 GEN2, and the HERMLE Digital Twin. In the current year, new presentations in the area of complete machining and intuitive machine operation are also planned.
As of December 31, 2025, HERMLE employed 1,639 employees compared to 1,603 people at the same time last year. The moderate increase was mainly due to the hiring of trainees and students who successfully completed their programs, as well as the refilling of vacant training or dual study positions. The number of young professionals learning a future-oriented profession at HERMLE increased from 126 to 144. In addition, there were targeted new hires, particularly in the areas of automation, development, IT, and foreign service.
At the beginning of 2026, demand at HERMLE further stabilized. A certain base formation was also observed domestically, although at a low level. While the conditions in Germany remain less investment-friendly, HERMLE sees opportunities through individual projects as well as planned public infrastructure and defense measures. Furthermore, acquiring additional new customers in various foreign markets, some with a start-up character, could have a positive effect.
Against this backdrop, the forecast for the overall year 2026 currently assumes that HERMLE's revenue will be around 10% above the previous year's value in the best-case scenario, and in the case of an unfavorable development, it will be in the low single-digit percentage range below the previous year's figure. The operating result could reach the previous year's level in a positive scenario but could also be up to 50% lower. As in the previous year, uncertainties remain in this regard. In addition to the still relatively low capacity utilization, the earnings situation is affected by rising personnel costs, intense competitive and price pressure, currency effects, as well as bureaucratic requirements and resulting non-value-adding additional work.
The consequences of the Iran war, which have further increased the extremely high uncertainty regarding future geo- and trade-political developments since March, cannot currently be quantified for HERMLE and are therefore not considered in this forecast. Ongoing restrictions in oil and gas supply could lead to further rising inflation, higher production costs, as well as lower disposable incomes, resulting in a globally weaker economic development. Should supply shortages occur, the economy in oil-importing countries would be heavily burdened. In contrast, demand in certain sales areas such as aerospace, defense, or equipment for the oil and gas industry could increase, although the negative impacts of the conflict would likely not be compensated.
Regardless of the current overall economic situation, HERMLE expects a sustained high demand for automation solutions and high-performance machine tools in the medium term. The company can benefit from its high technological and service expertise, increased internationalization, and its good reputation as a financially solid and reliable partner.
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