NCAB: weak, but distinct, increase in order intake

Net sales amounted to SEK 950.6 million (EUR 81.2 million) during the first quarter of 2024, down 17% from SEK 1.14 billion (EUR 97.4 million) during the same period last year. The company states that compared with the year-earlier period, sales were affected by lower prices and continued inventory adjustments by customers.

Order intake during the quarter decreased 6% to SEK 970 million (EUR 82.8 million), compared to SEK 1.03 billion (EUR 87.9 million) during the first quarter last year.

EBITA decreased to SEK 142.6 million (EUR 12.1 million) from 183.7 million (EUR 15.6 million) a year ago. Profit after tax for the quarter amounted to SEK 89.8 million (EUR 7.6 million), a noticeable drop from SEK 125 million (EUR 10.6 million) during the same quarter last year.

"During the first quarter, we noted a weak, but distinct, increase in order intake after the flat development over the past two quarters, which followed on from several quarters of decline linked to a weaker economy and inventory adjustments across several customer levels. All segments, with the exception of East, noted positive trends, where North America has increased sequentially over the past four quarters, while Europe and Nordic improved following a weak fourth quarter of 2023. The German market remains soft, and we are yet to witness a turnaround in China," says NCAB President and CEO, Peter Kruk, in a press release.

Net sales were in line with order intake in previous quarters and as order intake grows, the book to bill has now risen just above one again. And the CEO continues to say that some areas were particularly strong during the quarter. 

In Aerospace NCAB managed to secure new customers and business in several markets. Defence developed favourably and the company is striving to expand its strong base in the Nordic region to more countries in Europe and North America. In Automotive, the company says that they can see a strong performance for its sales to heavy vehicles also linked to its presence in new, high-tech product areas such as intelligent camera solutions instead of traditional rear view mirrors. 

"We also noted that inventory adjustments by our customers and their customers are coming to an end, and customers who have not placed orders for several quarters have now returned. Furthermore, we can see higher activity by many customers and the number of contracts won for new articles has increased by 20% year-on-year," the CEO says.

However, NCAB is not expecting a rapid rebound in the market but rather a gradual improvement. Assuming the continuing overall improvement in the global economy, the company believes that the conditions are right for a strong second half of the year.

"Profitability remains healthy with strong cash flow and we are well prepared to continue to capture market share as demand accelerates."