EQS-News: PSI with strong new business and stabilization of earnings in third quarter

PSI with strong new business and stabilization of earnings in third quarter
- New orders 16.1% above previous year at 238 million euros
- Sales increase by 2.7% to 184.5 million euros
- Annual targets for PSI App Store already achieved after nine months
 

Berlin, October 27, 2023 – The PSI Group increased sales by 2.7% to 184.5 million euros in the first nine months of 2023 (Sept. 30, 2022: 179.7 million euros). The operating result (EBIT) was positive in the third quarter at 2.65 million euros, but for the first nine months of 2023 it was still negative at −2.7 million euros after the one-time expenses of the second quarter (Sept. 30, 2022: 14.3 million euros). Accordingly, the group net result was −7.1 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: 8.0 million euros). New orders improved by 16.1% year-on-year to 238 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: 205 million euros). At 199 million euros, the order backlog at Sept. 30, 2023 exceeded the prior-year figure by 9.3% (Sept. 30, 2022: 182 million euros).

The Energy Management segment (energy grids, energy trading, public transport) achieved 0.7% lower sales of 91.8 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: 92.4 million euros) and a significantly deteriorated operating result of −7.5 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: 1 million euros). In the Electrical Grids business unit, earnings were still impacted by legacy projects. The new management established effective July 1, 2023, started to clear up the risks from legacy projects in the third quarter and is working towards the turnaround of the business unit in the fourth quarter. Further lucrative new orders were won in the third quarter, which are subject to the new process for order acceptance that minimizes risks. Among them is the major contract from a leading European transmission system operator, which PSI won at the beginning of the third quarter. In Southeast Asia, the strong order trend of the first half the year continues. Here PSI is benefiting from the increased gas price and was able to significantly increase new orders, sales and earnings.

Sales in the Production Management segment (metals, industry, logistics) increased by 6.2% to 92.7 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: 87.3 million euros). The segment's operating profit decreased by 22.3% to 11.1 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: 14.3 million euros). In contrast to the previous year, major licenses, particularly in the metals-producing industry business, are not recognized until the fourth quarter. The Logistics division in particular continued to develop positively, winning an important major order and significantly increasing incoming orders, sales and earnings. Sales generated via the cloud-based PSI App Store more than doubled in the first nine months of 2023 compared to the same period of the previous year, thus exceeding the annual target for the PSI App Store ahead of schedule.

The number of employees in the Group increased slightly to 2,279 (Sept. 30, 2022: 2,256). Cash flow from operating activities changed only marginally compared with the prior-year period to −7.1 million euros (Sept. 30, 2022: −7.3 million euros). At 47.0 million euros, cash and cash equivalents were 5.6 million euros higher than in the previous year (Sept. 30, 2022: 41.4 million euros), offset by higher current financial liabilities of 27.2 million euros (Dec. 31, 2022: 4.7 million euros).

In the Production Management segment, PSI continues to benefit from strong demand in North America, South America and increasingly also in India and Australia. At the same time, the trend towards sustainable industrial production is creating increasing demand for optimization solutions based on industrial artificial intelligence. In the Energy Management segment, PSI continues to see high demand for solutions for the digitalization of energy grids. Since the law to restart the digitalization of the energy transition came into force in May 2023, this increasingly concerns inquiries in the area of smart micro-grid solutions for the active and intelligent management of low-voltage grids.

For the full year 2023, the PSI Executive Board continues to expect, despite the still burdened result in the third quarter, to achieve the planned year-on-year increases in new orders and sales of 10% and an EBIT in the corridor between 5 and 7 million euros with a seasonally very strong fourth quarter. In the long term, the management is maintaining its growth strategy for the PSI Group.

The PSI Group develops software products for optimizing the flow of energy and materials for utilities and industry. As an independent software producer with more than 2,200 employees, PSI has been a technology leader since 1969 for process control systems that ensure sustainable energy supply, mobility and production by combining AI methods with industrially proven optimization methods. The innovative industry products are sold both directly and via the cloud-based PSI App Store. www.psi.de

Contact:

PSI Software AG
Karsten Pierschke
Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communication
Dircksenstraße 42-44
10178 Berlin
Germany

Tel. +49 30 2801-2727
Email: KPierschke@psi.de