Nimbus Group sales fell by 20% to during the third quarter 2024, however, order intake rose 20% year-on-year in a sign that the market has bottomed out.
In terms of sales, the European market showed very weak growth and sales fell by a full 61% in the third quarter.
This decline is in line with the trend Nimbus has seen since last winter, albeit slightly deeper.
The Group has faced increased costs under absorption particularly in the small boat production sector which have had a negative impact on the Group’s results.
The Finnish operations had an operating loss (rolling 12 months) of around MSEK -40.
In addition, the business has lot of capital tied up due to low demand, which has also had a negative impact on its cash flow.
The Group’s latest financial statements show that some of the tied-up capital is due to a favourable sales trend in the US.
With most of the boats produced in Europe, capital is tied up during the long transportation period.
The Group is continuing to increase its local production of more boat models to reduce this effect.
The various measures that we are now taking, including those in Finland, will lay the groundwork for better opportunities once the market turns around.
Jan-Erik Lindström
The closure of the Group’s Finnish boat production was announced in September 2024 with the adjustments leading to non-recurring costs affecting the quarterly result. The closure of the facilities is expected to yield a profit improvement of MSEK 50 per year when fully implemented in late 2025.
“Weak earnings and cash flow naturally affect our liquidity and financial position, and the company’s management has therefore had a very strong focus on various measures to reduce our costs and increase cash flow,” explained Jan-Erik Lindström, president and CEO.
“The various measures that we are now taking, including those in Finland, will lay the groundwork for better opportunities once the market turns around.”
And he pointed to two further bright spots that are anticipated to have a positive effect on the Group’s finances.
Framework agreement
Nimbus Group has signed a framework agreement with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration for the development and delivery of up to 100 work boats to the Swedish Armed Forces.
“Work boats is an interesting segment because it offers opportunities for long term supply agreements and with major customers in publicly funded operations such as defence, police and fire services,” explained Jan-Erik.
“For natural reasons, this customer category is less sensitive to economic cycles and therefore offers an opportunity to balance fluctuations with the rest of the business.”
And the Group is seeing ‘major interest’ in the Nimbus 495 Flybridge with ten already sold since the boat debuted earlier in the season.
