The major reorganizations and management changes at Siemens are over. In the first financial year under new CEO Roland Busch, the Munich-based DAX-listed company achieved brilliant figures in an almost unspectacular way. Profit jumped by 59% to 6.7 billion euros, as Siemens announced on Thursday (11.11.2021). The company thus exceeded its forecast, which it had repeatedly raised with regularity over the course of the fiscal year.

Things are going extremely well at Siemens. The Group came through the coronavirus crisis well last year. It is now benefiting from the market recovery and the developments spurred on by the pandemic. There is an "incredible pull" in demand for digitalization, automation and sustainability, said Busch. "This plays into the hands of our portfolio." The Group also expects a tailwind for the future. Among other things, it will benefit from the development of infrastructure for electric cars, the expansion of rail transport and economic stimulus programs such as the one in the USA.

"Of course, the noticeable economic recovery has boosted us - in all regions and especially in industries such as automotive, mechanical engineering, electronics and most infrastructure sectors. However, the overall environment remains difficult," said the Group CEO. "We continue to face challenges due to the pandemic, risks in the supply chain, parts shortages and rising costs." In terms of the semiconductor shortage, Siemens has "come through relatively well so far". Busch hopes that the situation will ease in the second half of 2022.

A cautious start to the new financial year

The figures do not yet reflect the risks mentioned by the Siemens CEO. Turnover has risen by 13% to 62.3 billion euros. All businesses are once again well above the level of 2019, before the outbreak of the pandemic, as Busch emphasizes. The company has made up for the setback, grown and gained market share.

Busch is also confident about the new financial year, which began in October: "We will continue this momentum in the 2022 financial year." The company is "optimally positioned". However, the forecast reads rather cautiously: earnings are expected to be similar to those of the past fiscal year and sales are only expected to increase in the mid-single-digit percentage range.

In the past fiscal year, Siemens raised its forecast several times. Three times when presenting the quarterly figures and once implicitly at the Capital Markets Day. At that time, Siemens had kept the forecast stable, although additional costs were included.

In view of the announced split-up of the old arch-rival General Electric (GE), Busch renewed his commitment to "Mobility" - the smallest core division. In the past, people outside the Group have repeatedly questioned whether the train business fits in with the rest of the core portfolio. However, Busch emphasized that he saw "no reason at all" to change anything. And he couldn't resist a little side-swipe: Compared to GE, the company is actually two steps ahead, he said, referring to the spin-off of Siemens Energy last year and Siemens Healthineers in 2018.

Shareholders will also benefit from the overall development: the dividend is set to rise by 50 cents to 4 euros per share. The stock market responded favorably to the figures - Siemens shares were up significantly in the morning. Busch is clearly satisfied with his first year at the helm: "It was an outstanding, historic year for Siemens."