Scaling already before defence kicks in; PT Up

The quarter showed continued progress, with total output up 15% yoy to € 279m and reported EBITDA up 48% yoy to € 25.7m, implying a 2pp yoy margin improvement to 9.2%. The run-rates support the FY guidance (output: +16% yoy, margin +1.8pp yoy). Meanwhile, order backlog reached a new record of € 3.4bn (+45% yoy). The implied order intake stood at c. € 439m, equivalent to a strong 1.6x book-to-bill. Importantly, neither order intake nor margins yet reflect the expected defence ramp or future mix shift towards higher-margin national defence and commercial opportunities.

A potential capital increase should support the next leg of the investment case. Primary proceeds could fund OHB’s scale-up phase by increasing capacity to pre-finance and execute larger defence-space programmes, while a parallel KKR secondary would improve free float and institutional access from today’s very limited 5.7%. With the Fuchs family intending to remain clearly above 50%, the long-term entrepreneurial setup remains intact.

With investor attention increasingly shifting towards space, supported by the potential SpaceX IPO and rising defence-space order momentum in Europe, OHB should benefit from a supportive news-flow backdrop. Strong sales growth into the next decade, further acceleration potential from national defence contracts and positive mix effects should drive margin expansion and a disproportionate EPS CAGR of 39% into 2030e (eNuW). Importantly, OHB’s right-to-win is rooted in decades of engineering know-how, customer trust and proven delivery capability. This should ensure that the company is not just exposed to the space theme, but one of its key European beneficiaries.

Following the re-rating, OHB no longer screens as a classical near-term multiple discount story. Still, the valuation looks attractive relative to the duration and scarcity of the growth profile, in our view. OHB is the largest listed European space pure-play and one of only three leading space-systems providers for ESA. Moreover, compared to listed space peers, the stock still trades attractively at c. 4x EV/sales for 2026e vs. 5.2x median of the peer group, despite OHB’s unique track-record, profitability and institutional customer access.

Action: We raise our terminal EBIT margin assumption to 13% from 11%, reflecting a structurally better mix from defence, secure space infrastructure and private commercial opportunities such as Moonport and Rocket Factory Augsburg. BUY, new PT € 320 (old: € 272), on DCF.