Vulcan Energy Resources announced that Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd (HPPL) and CIMIC Group (CIMIC) will make strategic investments of a total of EUR 40m. While HPPL has already been a Top 5-shareholder, CIMIC Group, member of the German HOCHTIEF Group, becomes a substantial shareholder of Vulcan. The funds will be used for key EPCM validation works, as well as the completion of timely early works, while Vulcan is in the middle of the finalisation of the formal funding package. While mwb research’s analysts have anticipated a fundraising in 2024, their estimates were based on a lower share price. mwb research now expects a slightly lower dilution, which has a positive effect on their target price. The analysts confirm their BUY recommendation with a revised PT of EUR 10.50 (old: EUR 9.90). The previous update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/research/Vulcan%20Energy%20Resources

Koenig & Bauer (SKB) hosted a Capital Markets Day at drupa, the industry's flagship trade fair, which usually takes place every four years and which acts as a catalyst for the entire industry to showcase innovative products and services. Due to the pandemic, the last drupa took place eight years ago, making this year's event even more important. Alongside the exhibition, SKB provided a comprehensive overview of the company's strategic direction, market opportunities and ongoing projects, ultimately giving investors an insight into the company's growth potential and initiatives to improve profitability and sustainability. mwb research’s analysts maintain their BUY rating with unchanged PT to EUR 18.00 and acknowledge that the share price has recovered almost 35% since end of Feb. this year. With increased visibility into the company’s mid-term targets the experts see further upside to their and consensus estimates. The full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/research/Koenig%20&%20Bauer%20AG

Sartorius’ management confirmed a normalization of order behavior with an unclear outcome. Therefore, order intake is not a reliable indicator and management is sailing in foggy waters on a quarterly basis. Overall, customers' order sizes are shrinking, and investment decisions are being delayed or postponed. mwb research’s analysts continue to believe that the pandemic has triggered pull-forward effects, and that global laboratory capacity will be saturated for years to come. mwb research remains cautious on the 2024 targets as Q2 results could be disappointing again and the potential recovery has not yet materialized. In detail, Q2 margins will be weaker than in Q1. Hence, the experts continue to see a risk of guidance cuts. Therefore, they confirm their SELL rating based on lowered expectations with a reduced price target of EUR 210.00 (old EUR 240.00). The full update can be downloaded under research-hub.de/companies/Sartorius%20AG

CHAPTERS Group published the FY23 report, confirming preliminary figures from early March. Over the course of 2023, CHAPTERS and its investment platforms have acquired majority stakes in 18 operating companies and spun off the building services group ARUDI. Looking ahead, the company’s development will be defined by its M&A activity. So far, CHAPTERS has added four companies in 2024, thereof three for mlog. In April, the company announced that it intends to conduct a capital increase of up to EUR 60-80m later this year, supported by a backstop agreement with investors for up to EUR 52m. mwb research continues to see CHAPTERS as an exciting opportunity for investors to join large value investors and invest in long-term growth. On a revised model, mwb research increases the PT to EUR 27.00 (old: EUR 24.00). BUY. The full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/CHAPTERS%20Group%20AG

FCR has made a good start to the financial year and has published its key figures for Q1 24. EBITDA increased to EUR 7.5m (previous year: EUR 7.2m), while EBT decreased slightly to EUR 3.6m (previous year: EUR 3.9m) mainly attributable to higher financing costs. The results demonstrate the stability and profitability of the business model, which is based on predictable rental income. At EUR 2.0m (previous year: EUR 2.3m), FFO remained at a satisfactory level and only slightly below expectations. However, due to indexed rents and further acquisitions, FCR should reach or even exceed mwb research’s estimates of EUR 8.4m for FY24. Key figures such as occupancy and WAULT remained stable. Management is also optimistic about the rest of the year. mwb research therefore reiterates its BUY recommendation with an unchanged PT of EUR 20.50. The previous full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/FCR%20Immobilien%20AG

H2 Core, a company in which Enapter holds a significant stake, was presented at the mwb research Renewables Conference yesterday. The company is a hydrogen system integrator, specializing in the final combination and installation of complete hydrogen systems (electrolyser, tank and fuel cell). H2 Core is about to go public via a reverse IPO. For Enapter, the partnership has two main benefits: on the one hand, Enapter can offer complete solutions through H2 Core and benefit from the associated growth. In addition, the value of Enapter's stake in H2 Core should become more visible after the IPO. All this is further evidence that Enapter has a good sense for forming value accretive partnerships in order to optimally position itself in the hydrogen market. mwb research’s analysts therefore reiterate their BUY rating with an unchanged PT of EUR 15.00. The full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/Enapter%20AG

Photon Energy CEO Georg Hotar presented the company's business model, recent developments and outlook at the mwb research Renewables Conference (video recording: https://research-hub.de/events). 2023 was a challenging year for Photon Energy, as several business units faced adverse conditions simultaneously. Falling electricity prices and PV component prices and grid bottlenecks delaying new projects all weighed on results. However, there is evidence of a turnaround in 2024. Photon Energy has shifted a significant part of its Hungarian portfolio to a feed-in tariff model, thus securing more stable revenues. Rising forward electricity prices are another positive indicator. Finally, the New Energy business is expected to make a significant contribution for the first time in FY24. Photon Energy maintains its FY24 revenue and EBITDA guidance of EUR 90-100m and EUR 16-18m, respectively, and thus expects significant top- and bottom-line growth. mwb research’s analysts reiterate their BUY rating with an unchanged price target of EUR 3.05. The full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/Photon%20Energy%20NV

Since publishing its Q1 results a month ago, Kontron’s shares have risen by nearly 14%, outperforming the market due to recent positive developments. These include a significant contract to supply smart charging stations for electric vehicles, valued at a minimum of EUR 200m, and leveraging expertise from the Katek merger. Kontron also completed the delisting tender offer for Katek SE, increasing its stake to 87.31%. Additionally, Kontron sold TeleAlarm Europe GmbH for EUR 39m, aligning with its strategic focus on IoT solutions. These actions, alongside operational and strategic transformations, bolster Kontron's shift towards a pure play IoT company. mwb research’s analysts therefore maintain their BUY rating with an unchanged price target of EUR 34.00. The full update can be downloaded under: https://www.research-hub.de/companies/research/Kontron%20AG

Shares in Siemens Energy have rallied 300% in seven months as financial concerns have been eased by government and bank guarantees and the first real progress appears to be being made in the beleaguered wind business, with the smaller onshore 4.X turbines expected to be relaunched in October and the larger 5.X to follow in 2025. A comparison with GE Vernova shows that there is still upside potential despite the share price performance. Both companies are quite similar and have a pivotal role to play in the energy transition. Even if Siemens Energy's onshore wind challenges look more severe than GE Vernova's, a 50% discount on EV/EBITDA looks excessive. mwb research’s analysts raise their price target from EUR 26.00 to EUR 30.00 and reiterate their BUY recommendation. The full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/Siemens%20Energy%20AG

RedCare Pharmacy's shares dropped by over 25% since the release of its prelim. Q1 results early April. Also, final figures at the end of April did not help to convince investors to get back into the stock. In contrary, the negative trend persisted, which mwb research’s analysts believe was mainly due to several factors: slowing revenue momentum with Q1, little impact of e-RX sales in the DACH region and increased marketing expenses pressuring margin development. In addition, rumors of Amazon Pharmacy entering the German market further impacted the stock, which in total led to several broker downgrades and revised consensus estimates, now expecting a 2024 EPS of EUR -0.37 (mwb est. EUR -0.05). Nonetheless, RedCare's strong market position could benefit it long-term, prompting mwb research’s analysts to upgrade from SELL to HOLD with unchanged PT of EUR 114.00. The full update can be downloaded under https://www.research-hub.de/companies/Redcare%20Pharmacy%20N.V.