Aumann (ETR:AAG) management told investors that 2025 delivered “strong results in a challenging market environment,” despite a sharp decline in revenue tied to cautious capital spending across the automotive sector. CEO Sebastian Roll and CFO Jan-Henrik Pollitt also highlighted a strategic push to broaden the company’s automation business beyond automotive through its Next Automation segment, with growing traction in areas such as defense, aerospace, clean tech, and life science.
Business focus: automation for e-mobility and new industries
Roll described Aumann’s core model as designing and building “high-end, fully automated production lines” tailored to customer needs, ranging from standardized modular cell systems to fully customized large-scale production solutions. He said the company’s experience in automation and its ability to deliver customized solutions quickly remains a competitive advantage, particularly in “fast-growing markets.”
Roll also pointed to macro drivers supporting automation demand outside automotive, including demographic change, labor shortages, and cost pressure. He said these factors are contributing to growth opportunities for Next Automation, which the company has shifted “from an opportunistic to a strategic approach.”
Market commentary: BEV growth and customer investment caution
Roll said global battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales exceeded 13.7 million units in 2025, a 30% increase versus 2024. He noted China remained the largest market at 9 million units, while Europe reached more than 2.2 million units, up 26% year-over-year, and Germany posted 43% growth. The U.S. market, he added, was “at least stable” at 1.2 million units.
While pointing to forecasts that BEVs could represent 40% of sales by 2030 and two-thirds by 2035, management emphasized that near-term customer investment behavior remains cautious—especially in automotive. Pollitt said the cautious tone was visible “across the full spectrum of OEMs and suppliers,” affecting order intake and backlog.
2025 financial results: revenue down, margins up
Pollitt said Aumann entered 2025 expecting a revenue decline due to softer order intake in 2024, and prioritized actions to protect profitability. For 2025, the company reported:
- Revenue: EUR 204 million, down 35% year-over-year
- EBITDA: EUR 28.2 million, down 21% year-over-year
- EBITDA margin: 13.8%, up from 11.5% a year earlier
- Order intake: EUR 147.5 million, down 26% year-over-year
- Order backlog: EUR 122.2 million at year-end 2025, down from EUR 184 million
- Net cash: EUR 148 million (cash and cash equivalents including securities of EUR 152.8 million)
Pollitt said revenue was broadly in line with the company’s refined outlook, noting initial expectations of EUR 210 million to EUR 230 million were updated to EUR 205 million in January, with audited revenue landing at EUR 204 million.
Management attributed the margin improvement to a “high quality and well-diversified order backlog,” strict project cost discipline, capacity adjustments aligned to weaker demand, and a stronger-than-expected fourth quarter. Pollitt said some larger E-Mobility orders were completed ahead of plan in Q4, supporting profitability.
Segment performance: E-Mobility weakness, Next Automation gains in orders
In E-Mobility, Pollitt reported order intake of EUR 91 million, down 44% year-over-year, with order backlog falling 50% to EUR 74.3 million. Segment revenue decreased 37% to EUR 163.8 million. EBITDA fell more slowly than revenue, down 21% to EUR 26.6 million, resulting in a 16.2% EBITDA margin.
In Next Automation, Pollitt said order intake rose 54% year-over-year to EUR 56.5 million, which he linked to the segment’s “new positioning” opening additional markets. Order backlog increased 39% to EUR 47.9 million. Revenue declined 25% to EUR 40.2 million, which Pollitt said reflected a tougher comparison because the prior year included a major photovoltaic project. The segment posted EBITDA of EUR 5.1 million, with margin improving two percentage points to 12.8%.
Roll said the company’s Next Automation momentum is supported by activity across targeted industries. He noted preparations for a re-entry into aviation and said Aumann had already secured initial orders in early 2026. He also described drone-related opportunities as a close fit with Aumann’s capabilities—electric motors, battery packs, system integration, and end-of-line testing—and said the company secured its first orders in 2024. Roll added that Aumann won a “double-digit million” order in energy infrastructure for assembly and test lines for medium-voltage circuit breakers, and entered the pharma market in 2025 with solutions for producing skin-delivered patches and oral thin films.
Cash flow, capital returns, and 2026 guidance
Pollitt reported operating cash flow of EUR 38.4 million, supported by strong results and a EUR 50 million reduction in working capital versus 2024. He said Aumann returned EUR 23.3 million to shareholders through dividends and a share buyback program. The company ended 2025 with an equity ratio of 66.7% and EUR 153 million cash, including EUR 148 million net cash.
Management said it plans to propose a dividend of EUR 0.25 per share. Pollitt also referenced existing authorization to acquire treasury shares of up to 10% of share capital, though the company said during Q&A that there is “no current decision on further buybacks.”
For 2026, Aumann guided to revenue of around EUR 160 million and an EBITDA margin of 6% to 8%. Pollitt said E-Mobility revenue is likely to decline due to a lower starting backlog, while Next Automation should continue to show positive momentum.
In Q&A, the company said recurring revenue from after-sales and services is approximately 10%, and suggested retrofit activity can increase in periods of customer investment reluctance. On competition, Roll said Chinese competition is “nothing new” and that Aumann’s model focuses on being the “front runner” for initial production lines for new EV programs, while later lines may face more pricing competition.
Roll said M&A remains a key pillar, with the company now looking “especially for targets in the area of Next Automation.” He added that the U.S. remains a geographic priority as a potential hub, while within Europe Aumann is seeking technology and customer relationships tied to Next Automation industries such as aviation, defense, and life science.
On capacity, management said it retains some in-house headroom to scale if order intake rebounds, and suggested the current structure could support revenues rising back toward roughly EUR 240 million to EUR 250 million if markets improve. The company did not provide segment order intake for the first quarter of 2026 when asked. It also said it expects some working capital increases in 2026, potentially returning toward 15% to 20% of revenue.
About Aumann (ETR:AAG)
Aumann AG manufactures and sells specialized machines and production lines for components of electric and classic drive chain systems in Europe, the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, and internationally. It operates through E-Mobility and Classic segments. The E-Mobility segment offers specialized machinery and automated production lines for the automotive industry; e-traction engines, inverters, power-on-demand units, and electronic components; and energy storage and conversion systems, such as batteries and fuel cells.
