GEA delivers strong third quarter: order intake rises substantially, revenue and profitability further improved

Corporate Press Releases

GEA delivers strong third quarter: order intake rises substantially, revenue and profitability further improved

Düsseldorf, November 09, 2026 – GEA continued its positive business performance in the third quarter of 2026. Order intake developed particularly strongly, growing organically by 19.5 percent. This was driven by both strong base business and large orders totaling EUR 294.8 million. GEA also further increased revenue and profitability. The Group confirmed its outlook for fiscal year 2026, which had been raised in July.

• Order intake increases by 20.3 percent to EUR 1,651 million (Q3 2025: EUR 1,372 million); organic growth of 19.5 percent
• Revenue grows by 7.0 percent to EUR 1,461 million (Q3 2025: EUR 1,366 million); organic revenue growth of 6.2 percent
• EBITDA before restructuring expenses increases by 12.6 percent to EUR 261 million (Q3 2025: EUR 232 million); corresponding margin reaches new record high of 17.9 percent
• ROCE rises to a new record high of 37.8 percent (Q3 2025: 35.4 percent)
• Free cash flow increases to EUR 135 million (Q3 2025: EUR 52 million); net liquidity improves to EUR 115 million despite ongoing share buyback program
• Outlook for fiscal year 2026 confirmed: organic revenue growth of 6.0 to 8.0 percent, EBITDA margin before restructuring expenses of 17.0 to 17.4 percent, and ROCE of between 36.0 and 40.0 percent.

Stefan Klebert, CEO of GEA: "This quarter, we once again accelerated our growth and demonstrated that the measures under our 'Mission 30' strategy are taking full effect. A 20 percent increase in order intake is a strong signal. Our customers are investing and placing their trust in GEA technologies. Our innovative solutions for the pharmaceutical industry are a good example: here, we again achieved strong growth in the third quarter. They are one of a number of growth drivers at GEA in which we see significant potential. We also clearly increased both revenue and profitability. All of this creates an excellent foundation for positive development beyond 2026."

Sizeable growth in order intake

Order intake increased by 20.3 percent to EUR 1,650.7 million in the third quarter (Q3 2025: EUR 1,372.4 million). Organic growth amounted to 19.5 percent. All divisions contributed to this. Solutions and technologies for the customer industries Dairy Processing, Beverage and Pharma were particularly strong in demand.

In the pharma business, Continuous Tableting performed especially strongly in the third quarter. This innovative technology enables pharmaceutical tablets to be manufactured significantly faster and more efficiently. Following the delivery of several systems for product development, further orders were received in 2024 and 2025, with the commissioning of the first commercial production lines. A large order for Continuous Tableting technologies in the third quarter further strengthened the positive momentum toward its commercialization. Continuous Tableting is one of the technologies which GEA has identified under Mission 30 as a strategic growth field with above-average growth rates. GEA expects average annual revenue growth (CAGR) between 15 and 20 percent in this area through 2030.

In addition to continued strong base business, a high volume of large orders contributed to the strong third-quarter order intake: GEA booked large orders totaling EUR 294.8 million, compared with EUR 64.4 million in the third quarter of 2025. Large orders worth EUR 191.7 million were attributable to the Nutrition Plant Engineering (NPE) division. The remaining EUR 103.1 million in large orders was attributable to the Pharma & Food Applications (PFA) division.

Total revenue increased by 7.0 percent to EUR 1,461.2 million in the third quarter (Q3 2025: EUR 1,365.9 million). Organic growth amounted to 6.2 percent. Both new machine business and service business contributed to the increase. Service revenue rose to EUR 597.5 million from EUR 547.8 million in the prior-year quarter. Accordingly, the share of service business in Group revenue increased to 40.9 percent.

Profitability and return on capital improve further

EBITDA before restructuring expenses increased by 12.6 percent to EUR 260.9 million in the third quarter (Q3 2025: EUR 231.7 million). The corresponding EBITDA margin improved from 17.0 percent to 17.9 percent, reaching a new quarterly record high. Key drivers were the higher business volume and the strong profitability of the service business.

Net profit increased by 6.4 percent to EUR 128.5 million (Q3 2025: EUR 120.8 million). Earnings per share before restructuring expenses rose from EUR 0.76 to EUR 0.87, while earnings per share increased from EUR 0.74 to EUR 0.79.

Return on capital employed (ROCE) reached a new record high of 37.8 percent, compared with 35.4 percent in the prior-year quarter. This was primarily due to the stronger increase in EBIT before restructuring expenses compared with capital employed over the past twelve months.

Free cash flow and net liquidity remain strong

Cash performance was positive in the third quarter, too. Free cash flow increased to EUR 134.7 million from EUR 52.2 million in the prior-year quarter, primarily due to the positive earnings performance and lower cash outflows from investing activities.

Despite cash outflows related to the share buyback program launched in August, GEA achieved positive net liquidity in the third quarter. As of September 30, 2026, GEA had net liquidity of EUR 115.2 million, compared with net debt of EUR 36.3 million as of the prior-year reporting date. At the same time, EUR 54.1 million was spent on the acquisition of GEA shares under the share buyback program in the third quarter.

Profitable growth also from nine months perspective

GEA also recorded significant growth in the first nine months of 2026. Order intake increased by 12.3 percent to EUR 4,599.7 million and by 13.7 percent organically. Revenue rose by 6.1 percent to EUR 4,176.9 million, with organic growth of 7.5 percent. EBITDA before restructuring expenses increased by 10.9 percent to EUR 717.3 million. The corresponding margin rose to 17.2 percent from 16.4 percent in the prior-year period.

Raised outlook for 2026 confirmed

Following the strong performance in the first nine months, GEA confirms the outlook for full-year 2026, which was raised in July of that year. The company expects organic revenue growth of 6.0 to 8.0 percent, an EBITDA margin before restructuring expenses of 17.0 to 17.4 percent, and ROCE between 36.0 and 40.0 percent.

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About GEA

GEA is one of the world’s largest suppliers of systems and components to the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries. The international technology group, founded in 1881, focuses on machinery and plants, as well as advanced process technology, components and comprehensive services. For instance, every second pharma separator for essential healthcare products such as vaccines or novel biopharmaceuticals is produced by GEA. In food, every fourth package of pasta or every third chicken nugget are processed with GEA technology.

With more than 18,000 employees, the group generated revenues of about EUR 5.5 billion in more than 150 countries in fiscal year 2025. GEA plants, processes, components and services enhance the efficiency and sustainability of customers’ production. They contribute significantly to the reduction of CO2 emissions, plastic usage and food waste. In doing so, GEA makes a key contribution toward a sustainable future, in line with the company’s purpose: ”Engineering for a better world.”

GEA is listed on the DAX, the STOXX® Europe 600 Index and is also a constituent of the leading sustainability indices DAX 50 ESG, MSCI Global Sustainability and Dow Jones Best-in-Class World.

More information can be found online at gea.com.
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