Jungheinrich Annual General Meeting: Strong 2017 – good start to 2018

Hamburg, Germany. The shareholders of Jungheinrich AG approved a dividend for the 2017 financial year at today’s Annual General Meeting in Hamburg. At €0.50 per preferred share, it is up by 14 per cent on the prior-year value of €0.44. In his speech, Chairman of the Board of Management Hans-Georg Frey presented the company’s figures for 2017, as well as the months of January and February 2018, and unveiled his outlook for Jungheinrich’s 65th anniversary year. He also reported on the Group’s strategic orientation before an audience of 600 shareholders and guests. The strategy focuses on Jungheinrich’s innovative strength for automation, digitalisation and networking, as well as on improving energy efficiency in warehouses.

Hans-Georg Frey, Chairman of the Board of Management of Jungheinrich AG:

“We are on track to achieve €4 billion in net sales in the 2020 financial year. We were able to take a further important step in this direction in 2017 by producing more than 120,000 units – more than ever before. Net income rose by 18 per cent to €182 million. With our more than 16,000 employees worldwide, we have set a new record of €3.4 billion in net sales. This forms the basis for the highest dividend for our shareholders since our IPO.

We are taking an optimistic view towards the 2018 financial year and are on schedule with regard to achieving our targets after renewed growth in the first two months of the year. Production rose by 8% to 19,600 units, while net sales increased by 16% year-on-year to €562 million, driven in particular by the disproportionately high production of large trucks and the processing of project orders. We increased the value of our incoming orders by 6% to €584 million and also achieved a 6% increase in our incoming orders in terms of quantity to 20,800 units.

We expect the exceptional dynamics seen over the last four years, in which we achieved double-digit growth rates, to normalize in 2018. As far as this financial year is concerned, we expect to see incoming orders of between €3.75 billion and €3.85 billion and net sales of €3.6 billion to €3.7 billion. We currently estimate that EBIT will come to between €270 million and €280 million.”

In his speech, Hans-Georg Frey placed particular emphasis on Jungheinrich’s innovative strength in the company’s 65th anniversary year, and pointed to the company’s competency in the areas of automation, digitalisation and interconnectivity. Jungheinrich showcased two world premières at the LogiMAT trade fair with the world’s first reach truck with a lithium-ion battery permanently installed inside the unit, the ETV 216i, and with the STC 2B1A, the most powerful stacker crane in its class for automatic small parts warehouses. “Innovations like these are setting new standards for boosting energy efficiency and automation in the warehouses of this world,” said Frey. The increasing demand in the logistics systems business in particular highlights the importance of these innovations when it comes to making logistics processes more efficient. The challenges associated with e-commerce “ordered today, delivered today” can only be mastered with far-reaching automation and digitalisation in the entire warehouse. Frey emphasised the role played by Jungheinrich as a leading solutions provider for the intralogistics sector: “In terms of achieving holistic warehouse development, it is important to offer not only individual, singular digitalised products, but rather consistent and tailor-made 4.0 solutions. In this respect, Jungheinrich is the only competitor to offer comprehensive and fully interconnected solutions.” Its ongoing development from a forklift manufacturer into a leading solutions provider for the intralogistics sector means that Jungheinrich is well positioned for further growth. In light of mounting global challenges, Hans-Georg Frey called upon policy-makers to strengthen Germany’s competitive standing as a business location. 

Note: The speech made by the Chairman of the Board of Management, Hans-Georg Frey, can be found at www.jungheinrich.com

At a glance

WP / 3 / 17 April 2018

Change in the Supervisory Board of Jungheinrich AG

• Mr Franz Günter Wolf to leave the Supervisory Board

Hamburg, Germany. After 28 years, Mr Franz Günter Wolf will be leaving the Supervisory Board of Jungheinrich AG with effect from the end of the Annual General Meeting on 17 April 2018. Since Jungheinrich’s conversion into a stock corporation in 1990, Franz Günter Wolf has represented one of the company’s two shareholder families on the Supervisory Board. This makes him the longest serving Supervisory Board member. His successor is his son Andreas Wolf.

Jürgen Peddinghaus, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Jungheinrich AG: “This move represents a significant change in the Jungheinrich Supervisory Board. Critical and analytical expertise, entrepreneurial flair, personal modesty, a focus on performance and a particular commitment to employee concerns are the traits that Mr Wolf is known for as a family entrepreneur. All of the members of the Supervisory Board would like to thank Mr Wolf for his long-standing cooperation in a relationship based on trust, and welcome his son as his successor.”