Berlin, 28 July 2021 – The PSI Group increased new orders by 3.5% to 146 million euros (30 June 2020: 141 million euros) in the first six months. The order backlog on 30 June 2021 was, at 174 million euros, just about the same as the previous year (30 June 2020: 176 million euros). Group sales improved by 11.7% to 117.1 million euros (30 June 2020: 104.9 million euros), with the energy business making the greatest contribution to growth in the second quarter. The EBIT leapt by 87% to 10.1 million euros (30 June 2020: 5.4 million euros), the group net result was significantly improved to 7.0 million euros (30 June 2020: 3.7 million euros).
- New orders increase by 3.5% to 146 million euros
- Sales increase of 12% to 117.1 million euros
- EBIT leaps by 87% to 10.1 million euros
| Performance indicators (KEUR) | 01 Jan. – 30 June 2021 | 01 Jan. – 30 June 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | 117,117 | 104,853 | +11.7 % |
| EBIT | 10,133 | 5,413 | +87.2 % |
| Group net result | 7,034 | 3,723 | +88.9 % |
| Earnings per share (EUR) | 0.45 | 0.24 | +87.5 % |
Energy Management (energy networks, energy trading, public transportation) achieved 15.4% higher sales of 64.1 million euros (30 June 2020: 55.5 million euros) and a 65% higher EBIT of 4.0 million euros (30 June 2020: 2.4 million euros). The grid business was able to continue increasing its volume of new orders with orders from transmission and distribution system operators in the second quarter, although orders from Russia are only expected after the Duma elections. Demand for software for electro-bus depots remains strong. The network planning software developer NEPLAN AG, which has belonged to PSI since the fourth quarter of 2020, has collaborated in a number of projects and provided the best EBIT margin of the segment. A steel manufacturer has ordered the energy and CO2-trading software PSImarket. PSI expects a significant increase in business from the business for software that calculates (PSIreko), certifies (Blockchain) and trades (PSImarket) CO2 certificates.
Sales in Production Management (metals, industry, logistics) in the first six months were, at 53.0 million euros, 7.5% above the previous year (30 June 2020: 49.3 million euros). The business segment, whose products are already completely based on the group platform, increased by 80% to 6.7 million euros (30 June 2020: 3.7 million euros). The metals business has not yet reached the volume of new orders of the previous year, as a result of the boom in the price of steel, however, expects a significant increase in new orders with good margins. The automotive and logistics segments also continue to grow their sales and profits.
The number of employees in the group increased to 2,145 (30 June 2020: 1,995), in particular due to new hires in Poland, Germany and the USA. At 11.3 million euros, cash flow from operating activities was 41% below the comparable figure for the previous year (30 June 2020: 19.4 million euros), due in particular to growth financing. After payment of the dividend, which was increased by 4 million euros compared with the previous year, cash and cash equivalents amounted to 45.4 million euros (30 June 2020: 50.4 million euros). Following the two acquisitions last year, PSI is examining further acquisitions in the core business.
PSI once again invested in the app store and in B2B multi-cloud technology in the second quarter. This means that in the future PSI products can be delivered automatically not only to the PSI Cloud, but also to all standard cloud technologies of the group's customers. After delivery, the software products are adapted to the customer's operations by the customer's IT department and specialist departments, by partners and PSI consultants at runtime using intuitive workflow and dialog design tools, and then rolled out across all workstations and technical systems. With trial projects in production and logistics progressing well, a first partner in the steel industry, a Brazilian system integrator, has now also placed an order via the app store.
Preliminary inquiries from the steel and automotive industries continue to pick up but have not yet been reflected in order intake. In the energy business, steadily growing demand continues to be marked by the trend toward electrification and the current redispatch boom of the electricity distribution networks.
PSI is working on improving the margin in Energy Management, especially with more common parts and further product migration to the PSI platform. As planned, PSI will invest more than 30 million euros this year for the functionality of energy and transportation shift as well as for the cloud and web rollout of the group platform. The PSI Board raises the growth target from at least 5% to at least 10%. The EBIT target of more than 20 million euros will also be exceeded. The increase in the earnings target can only be substantiated with the orders from the third quarter.
The PSI Group develops its own software products for optimizing the flow of energy and materials for utilities (energy grids, energy trading, public transport) and industry (metals production, automotive, mechanical engineering, logistics). PSI was founded in 1969 and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide.
