Kalmar given Q1 lift

Kalmar expects its comparable operating profit margin to be above 12.5 percent in 2026.

President & CEO Sami Niiranen: Kalmar’s sales grew and overall profitability improved, but at the same time we faced operational headwinds in our Services segment. While I’m proud of our resilience, there is clearly still room for improvement. We are operating in an attractive market, from a strong financial position, that allows us to navigate an unpredictable world without compromising on our long-term goals.
The market activity in the quarter was in line with our expectations. We saw stable demand comparable to the previous quarters. Despite the increased geopolitical instability, we experienced continued high interest in our sustainable solutions across our core customer segments and regions. The data from our connected equipment also showed stable activity levels.
Our order intake for the first quarter totalled EUR 451 (480) million and continued sequentially on a stable level. The orders received increased in the Americas and the APAC region, but decreased in EMEA. The decline from the strong comparison period can largely be explained in the Equipment segment by the timing of some sizeable orders from our customers in ports and terminals and in the Services segment by a few large service agreements. On a positive note, the distribution end customer market in the US showed a gradual recovery in the first quarter. Our order book remained essentially unchanged.
Our financial performance remained solid. Sales increased by 5 percent or by 10 percent in constant currencies to EUR 420 (398) million. Sales grew in both segments and all market areas. The comparable operating profit of EUR 52 (48) million increased by 8 percent, representing 12.3 (12.0) percent of sales.
Profitability improved in our Equipment segment, but the Service segment’s profitability continued to be burdened by tariffs and challenges in the spare parts sales in North America, partly due to the sluggish market activity in the region. However, we are confident in our ability to improve the profitability of our Services business. Our large installed base of 70,000 equipment and global service network of approximately 1,500 service technicians, close to our customers, is an important asset and competitive edge. To address the operational shortfalls, we are implementing cost optimisation actions and have proactively introduced targeted sales growth and strategic pricing actions.
Kalmar’s financial position is strong. At the end of March we were net cash positive. ROCE increased to 24.2%. Our cash flow from operations excluding finance items and taxes amounted to EUR 67 million. Our Driving Excellence initiative continued to deliver results. By the end of March, we had achieved annualised gross efficiency improvements of approximately EUR 40 million.
Our eco portfolio sales continued to grow and already accounts for 45 (43) percent of sales. On the fully electric vehicle front the share of total Equipment orders in the last 12 months was 9 (11) percent, hence the pace being below our ambitions. In the coming quarters, we will expand our electric portfolio further. This will increase our competitiveness and meet the customer needs in the different end-markets.
Sustainable growth is driven by our own operations and by deepening strategic cooperations and partnerships with leading players and institutions. In March, we announced a donation of EUR 100,000 to the University of Tampere, to accelerate the development of electrification, automation, artificial intelligence and digitalisation.
Looking ahead. We are maintaining our full year guidance and estimate our comparable operating profit margin to be over 12.5 percent in 2026. Most importantly, we’re executing our core strategy by staying close to our customers’ evolving needs regardless of the geopolitical weather.