Only a few weeks ago, I reported to you that the Lübeck-based medical and safety technology manufacturer Drägerwerk AG & Co. KGaA had presented very good business figures for the 3rd quarter of 2023 and for the first nine months of the current year.

On Wednesday, Dräger announced that sales and earnings in the current 4th quarter of 2023 so far are above their own expectations. For this reason, the Lübeck company has again raised its forecast for the business year 2023.

But before I go into the latest forecast figures in more detail, I would like to give you a brief introduction to the medium-sized family company from the far north of Germany.

Drägerwerk in the Focus The Drägerwerk AG & Co. KGaA (short: Dräger) is active in the fields of medical and safety technology. Dräger medical technology products include anesthesia workplaces, ventilators, patient monitoring and devices for the medical care of premature and newborn babies.

In the field of safety technology, the company develops, produces and distributes personal protective equipment, gas measuring technology, diving technology and alcohol and drug detectors. The customers of the Lübeck company include hospitals, fire brigades, rescue services, authorities, military, mining and industry.

The company founded in Lübeck in 1889 is still majority owned by the family in fifth generation. Dräger employs more than 16,200 people worldwide and is represented in more than 190 countries.

Dräger raises forecast figures substantially Businesses at Drägerwerk have also developed better than expected in the 4th quarter. According to the company, this is mainly due to a continuing high realization of sales with high-margin products and effective cost management.

Therefore, Dräger now expects to exceed the current forecast for the business year 2023. After recalculation, the annual sales could even increase in currency-adjusted terms by more than 11%, corresponding to a nominal growth of more than 8.5%. The original sales forecast range for the business year 2023 was a currency-adjusted sales growth between 7 and 11%.

Dräger is also more optimistic about the operating profit margin (EBIT margin) and now expects a value of more than 4%. Originally, Dräger had assumed that it would achieve an EBIT margin of between 0 and 3%. In October, the forecast was then raised to 2 to 4%.

The preliminary figures for the business year 2023 will be published by Dräger in mid-January 2024. The financial year 2023 annual report will appear on March 7, 2024.

The news of the forecast increase again on Wednesday led to a slight stock price surge. Since the beginning of the year, the Dräger share is up around 21%. However, the paper is not included in my recommendation list, as I believe there are better German stocks.