Vitesco Technologies, a leading international supplier of modern drive systems and electrification solutions for sustainable mobility, has published its consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year 2022. Preliminary figures had already been reported on February 23, 2023, in which the company fully achieved – and in some cases exceeded – the group’s own forecast for all key financials.
“We look back on 2022 as a successful year despite the considerable challenges still remaining in the global market,” says CEO Andreas Wolf.
Record year: electrification products account for around 75 percent of order intake
Through organic growth, Vitesco Technologies increased its consolidated sales by 4.0 percent to €9.07 billion in 2022 (2021: €8.35 billion). Adjusted EBIT for the full year came in at €222.9 million (2021: €148.5 million). At 2.5 percent (2021: 1.8 percent), the adjusted EBIT margin was at the upper end of the forecast range of 2.3 percent to 2.5 percent. The group’s EBIT reached €143.3 million in 2022 (2021: €39.5 million).
Sales of electrification components came to around €1.1 billion (2021: €0.9 billion). All three units of the company’s core business contributed to this result. In percentage terms, the Electrification Technology business unit registered the strongest organic growth in sales, with an increase of 17.6 percent to €691.9 million (2021: €587.1 million).
Due to reporting date related effects, free cash flow for 2022 came in at €123.2 million (2021: €113.3 million). This was higher than both Vitesco Technologies’ own forecast of more than €75 million and market expectations of €68 million. Capital expenditure on property, plant, and equipment and software amounted to €446.6 million (2021: €441.3 million). The ratio of capital investment to sales is therefore 4.9 percent (2021: 5.3 percent).
As of December 31, 2022, Vitesco Technologies’ equity ratio stood at 40.3 percent (December 31, 2021: 36.3 percent). The group reported net liquidity of €333.4 million as of the balance sheet date (December 31, 2021: €345.1 million).
Despite facing considerable challenges in its global market, Vitesco Technologies received new orders worth €14 billion in 2022, of which €10.4 billion was attributable to electrification components. “Three quarters of our orders in 2022 came from the electrification business. That is a new record. The transition to electric vehicles is gaining momentum and is unstoppable now,” says CEO Andreas Wolf.
Around 90 percent of medium-term target for electrification sales already booked
As of December 31, 2022, Vitesco Technologies reported an order backlog totaling €58.5 billion, 46 percent of which is related to electrification. The company’s midterm objective is to generate sales of €5 billion in its electrification business, and around 90 percent of this is already booked based on existing orders.
Consolidated net income came in at €23.6 million in 2022 (2021: -€122.0 million), resulting in earnings per share of €0.59 (2021: -€3.05).
As the Vitesco Technologies Group AG reported retained profit of €0.00 in 2022, as it had done in the prior year as well, no dividend proposal for 2022 will be submitted for resolution to the Annual General Meeting on May 17, 2023.
Results of the individual business units
In 2022, sales generated by the Electrification Technology business unit increased by 17.9 percent to €691.9 million (2021: €587.1 million). This was driven by strong demand, particularly from China and Germany, for high-voltage electric drives and power electronics. Despite additional, substantial preliminary costs for future projects, the business unit’s adjusted EBIT improved to -€257.7 million (2021: -€273.0 million). This equates to an adjusted EBIT margin of -37.2 percent (2021: -46.5 percent).
Sales generated by the Electronic Controls business unit rose to €3.9 billion in 2022 (2021: €3.5 billion). The business unit’s adjusted EBIT climbed to €166.2 million (2021: €119.1 million). Its adjusted EBIT margin improved to 4.2 percent (2021: 3.4 percent). A strong rise in sales in the South Korean and North American markets led to an improvement in earnings despite further high costs related to the shortage in semiconductors.
The Sensing & Actuation business unit generated a solid €3.5 billion in sales in 2022 (2021: €3.2 billion). The business unit’s adjusted EBIT increased sharply to €328.0 million (2021: €267.2 million), resulting in its adjusted EBIT margin improving to 9.4 percent (2021: 8.4 percent). Strong demand from Europe and North America were the main drivers of this positive result. The shortage of semiconductors had only a minor effect on the business unit’s sales growth last year as it was possible in many cases to use broker parts.
Recovery in international vehicle market set to continue
Vitesco Technologies is expecting the market situation to improve slightly in the second half of 2023. It currently anticipates that global production of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles will stage a moderate recovery in 2023 and will grow by 3 to 5 percent overall compared with 2022. This assessment factors in both the expected effects of the ongoing energy crisis on production volumes in 2023 and the persistent supply shortages, particularly in the semiconductor segment.
Vitesco Technologies believes that Europe and North America will see the strongest increase in the production volume of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in 2023, with a range of 5 to 7 percent. The company expects the rise in production volume in China to be between 1 and 3 percent.
Outlook for 2023: sales and adjusted EBIT margin expected to increase again
Based on these rising production figures and the supporting trends provided by the transition to electric vehicles, Vitesco Technologies expects to generate group sales in the amount of €9.2 billion to €9.7 billion in fiscal year 2023. This range also takes into account the anticipated decrease in sales in contract manufacturing for the Continental Group and in the non-core-technologies of Vitesco Technologies.
For the adjusted EBIT margin, Vitesco Technologies is predicting a range between 2.9 and 3.4 percent in 2023. This estimate considers the additional costs that the company expects to incur as a result of the shortage in semiconductors, wage inflation, and the rising cost of materials. Free cash flow is expected to come in at around €50 million in 2023 and the ratio of capital expenditure to sales is projected to range between 5 and 6 percent.
CFO Werner Volz: “We will increase our consolidated sales and adjusted EBIT in 2023 even as we continue to focus activities on our transformation strategy.”
Sustainability report to be published on April 4, 2023
The sustainability report for 2022 will be published on April 4, 2023.
By 2030, Vitesco Technologies wants to achieve climate neutrality for its entire production and internal business activities. The company has also set itself the ambitious goal of making its entire value chain climate neutral by 2040 at the latest. This also includes all business activities outside the company’s own processes – from the extraction of raw materials to the use of products.
SOURCE: Vitesco Technologies
