Mrkt BUZZ, HANZA: Preannouncement confirms margin headway

Equity Research HANZA

HANZA says it sees continued good development in 2023 and that the company will report sales of around SEK 1,050m (824) and an EBITA margin exceeding 7.5 (5.0) per cent for Q1.

This implies a very solid growth rate of almost 30 per cent despite comparables getting tougher, and some eight per cent higher sales than consensus estimates (according to S&P Capital IQ). While HANZA has continuously beaten growth forecasts since at least mid-2021, we believe the strong margin in the recent quarter is particularly encouraging. The margin improvement is related to both segments, according to the press release. As a result, operating profit for the January to March period will be significantly above our previous estimates as well as consensus.

Last week, Nordic manufacturing services peer Scanfil also raised its full-year 2023 outlook for sales and earnings, citing, among other things, a faster-than-expected improvement in the availability of electronic components.

We will review our estimates and valuation for a likely raise in conjunction with the release of the full Q1 report on 3 May. The increased profitability is a clearly promising step towards the company’s goal of reaching an EBITA margin of at least eight per cent by the end of 2025, which is one key assumption for our previous bull case.

Read our latest Research Update (17 Feb).

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