Nordex (NDX1): Raises 2026 profit-margin forecast after Q3 operating profit more than doubles
On 15 October 2026 Nordex, the German maker of onshore wind turbines, published preliminary third-quarter figures and raised its full-year forecast for EBITDA margin (operating profit before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, as a share of sales) to 11.5% to 12.5%, from 8.0% to 11.0%. Quarterly EBITDA was about €278m against €136m a year earlier. The shares rose about 13% in Frankfurt on 16 October. $NDX1
What happened
Nordex issued an ad-hoc announcement at 20:28 on Thursday 15 October 2026. An ad-hoc announcement is the notice German-listed companies must publish immediately when they hold information that could move their share price. The company said its preliminary, unaudited figures for the third quarter (July to September 2026) were strong, and that it was therefore lifting its full-year EBITDA margin forecast. The sales forecast of €8.2bn to €9.0bn, the working-capital ratio target (below -9%) and planned spending on equipment and buildings (about €200m) were left unchanged.
Nordex gave two reasons. First, higher margins in its Service business, which maintains turbines after they are installed. Second, strong execution in its Projects business, which designs, builds and installs turbines. It said risks it had allowed for in the Projects part of its earlier forecast "did not materialise to the extent anticipated". Chief executive José Luis Blanco said: "The third quarter shows what our teams can deliver." The full third-quarter report, with detail on orders and segments, is due on 5 November 2026, so the figures below may still be refined.
The numbers, explained
All figures are euros, preliminary and unaudited, for July to September 2026 against the same quarter of 2025. Sales were about €2,187m against €1,706m, an increase of €481m, or 28.2% (481 divided by 1,706). EBITDA, a rough measure of operating profit before accounting charges for wear on equipment, was about €278m against €136m, up €142m or 104.4%. The EBITDA margin, which is EBITDA divided by sales, was 12.7% (278 divided by 2,187 equals 12.71%), against 8.0% a year earlier (136 divided by 1,706 equals 7.97%). In plain terms, Nordex kept about 12.7 cents of operating profit from each euro of sales, up from about 8.0 cents.
Free cash flow, the cash left after running costs and investment, was €379m against €149m, up €230m or about 154% (230 divided by 149). Against the previous quarter, the margin rose from 10.3% in the second quarter (EBITDA of €223.8m on sales of about €2.18bn, from Nordex's July report as summarised by Wind Insider) to 12.7%, a gain of 2.4 percentage points. Market analysts had expected Q3 EBITDA of about €241m on sales of about €2.2bn, according to Sharecast; the actual €278m was €37m, or 15.4%, higher (37 divided by 241). Analyst expectations are estimates, not company figures. The new margin range is 3.5 points higher at the bottom and 1.5 points higher at the top than before, so its midpoint moves from 9.5% to 12.0%. Applied to the unchanged sales range, our own working implies full-year EBITDA of roughly €0.94bn to €1.13bn (8.2 x 11.5% and 9.0 x 12.5%); that is our arithmetic, not a company figure.
Why it matters
Nordex earns money in two ways. Its Projects business sells and installs turbines, usually through large contracts with energy developers and utilities, and its Service business charges for maintenance over many years, which is steadier and tends to carry better margins. In the second quarter Projects produced about €2.0bn of sales and Service about €223m, and the order book, the value of work contracted but not yet delivered, stood at €18.4bn (€11.6bn Projects, €6.8bn Service), according to the company's July report as summarised by Wind Insider. The company's own explanation is that Service margins rose and that Projects finished without the extra costs it had feared; it did not break down the gain further in this announcement.
For the wider sector, wind turbine makers have spent years under pressure from rising component costs and project delays, so a rise in profitability at one of Europe's larger manufacturers is a data point worth noting, though it is a single company's quarter and not proof of an industry trend. The market reaction was large: Hargreaves Lansdown, relaying Sharecast, reported the shares up 13% by 11:15 UK time on 16 October. Commentary from us stops at the facts: the figures are preliminary, the forecast is the company's own, and Nordex did not publish orders or segment details in this announcement.
What to watch next
Nordex will publish its complete third-quarter report on 5 November 2026. That will show the split of sales and profit between Projects and Service, the number of megawatts ordered in the quarter (3,054 MW in the second quarter, up 32.2% on a year earlier) and the order book. Readers can check whether the preliminary €278m EBITDA and €2,187m sales figures hold once the full report is published, and whether the company repeats its expectation, stated in the announcement, that free cash flow will stay positive in the fourth quarter.
- EBITDA: operating profit before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation.
- Ad-hoc announcement: an immediate notice of price-sensitive information required of German-listed companies.
- Order book: the value of contracted work not yet delivered.
Sources
For information only. Not financial advice. See our disclaimer and editorial standards. Spotted an error? Tell us.
