Stock

PALFINGER AG’s shares are listed on the prime market on the Vienna Stock Exchange. In Germany, they are traded over the counter in Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Berlin, Munich and Dusseldorf. PALFINGER shares are included in the ATX Prime and ATX Global Players indices as well as in the Austrian sustainability index VÖNIX. PALFINGER AG shares have been included in the MSCI Global Small Cap Index since 2018.

On the stock market, 2023 was characterized by the pronounced volatility of individual markets. High inflation quickly put an end to early price gains resulting from anticipation of a recovery in the Chinese economy following the end of Covid-19 restrictions. Increases in the central banks' base rates significantly dampened economic growth. In addition, Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine dampened the mood. Measures taken by the central banks to curb inflation proved successful in the middle of the year and the mood turned again. As a result, even the resurgence of the Middle East conflict did not stand in the way of a year-end rally on the stock markets.

The PALFINGER share started well in 2023 with an opening price of EUR 23.65 and reached its high for the year of EUR 32.85 on March 7, 2023. Uncertainties in the construction industry and the declining expectations for 2024 resulted in PALFINGER's share price falling significantly from the beginning of April. The PALFINGER share price remained stable at around EUR 28.00 until the end of the first half of 2023. In the second half of the year, the uncertain outlook for the European construction industry for 2024 shaped further share price performance. The lowest price of EUR 19.92 was recorded on October 25, 2023. The share price rose again following the Capital Markets Day on November 9, 2023, and benefited from both the year-end rally and the more positive market assessments by central banks and analysts.

The PALFINGER share closed the stock market year at EUR 25.20 on December 29, 2023. This corresponds to a price gain of 6.55 percent over the year. In comparison, the ATX ended the year up by 9.87 percent.

PALFINGER AG has a stable core shareholder in the Palfinger family, which directly or indirectly holds around 56.4 percent of the shares and is also represented on the Supervisory Board. As a result, PALFINGER now holds 7.5 percent of its own shares. The remaining 36.1 percent of the shares are in free float. To the company's knowledge, private shareholders hold a significant proportion of the free float. The majority of the shares in free float are held by institutional investors, which are primarily located in continental Europe.

PALFINGER AG pursues a continuous dividend policy. Under this policy, approximately one third of annual profit is to be distributed to shareholders. In 2023 the consolidated net profit of PALFINGER AG amounted to EUR 107.7 million. Based on this, the PALFINGER Executive Board and Supervisory Board will propose a dividend of EUR 1.05 (2022: EUR 0.77) per share at the Annual General Meeting on April 10, 2024.

1) Calculated using the weighted average number of shares outstanding.