What are the reasons behind the drop in revenues compared to Q2'24, and are they temporary or structural?
Why revenues fell:
Hexagonâs Q2âŻ2025 sales slipped toâŻNOKâŻ674âŻm fromâŻNOKâŻ1,150âŻm in Q2âŻ2024 â a ~41âŻ% decline. The drop is driven by a combination of demandâcycle and execution factors. First, global cleanâgaseousâenergy projects (e.g., hydrogenâstorage and compressedânaturalâgasâtransport) have entered a midâyear slowdown as many largeââscale pilots that booked in the first half of 2024 were completed, leaving a gap before the next wave of commercial rollâouts. Second, Hexagon disclosed supplyâchain bottlenecks and componentâleadâtime extensions that forced the company to defer shipments and trim order intake for the quarter. Finally, the broader macro environment â weaker industrial activity in Europe and a modest pullâback in capitalâexpenditure for energyâtransition assets â reduced newâproject pipelines, further curbing topâline growth.
Temporary vs. structural:
These headwinds are largely temporary. The Q2âŻ2024 revenue base was inflated by a concentration of largeâproject deliveries that are not recurring each quarter. The current shortâfall reflects a seasonal trough in the rollout of hydrogenâstorage systems and a transient supplyâchain squeeze rather than a permanent erosion of the companyâs market position. Hexagonâs longâterm fundamentals â worldâleadership in composite cylinders, a growing hydrogenâeconomy, and a diversified customer base â remain intact. Unless the supplyâchain constraints become chronic or the hydrogen market fails to scale, the revenue dip should reverse as new contracts materialise in the second half of 2025.
Trading implications:
* Shortâterm bias: The market has already priced in the Q2 miss (price down ~5â7âŻ%). With the downside largely priced, a shortâcover rally is plausible if the company confirms a robust order backlog for H2âstorage in its Q3 update.
* Key watchâlist: Q3âŻ2025 guidance on order intake, any update on component leadâtimes, and macroâEâUâenergyâcapex data. A buyâonâdip if the backlog shows a clear upward trajectory; otherwise, a defensive short if the supplyâchain issues appear persistent.
* Technical: The stock is testing the Q2âlow support aroundâŻNOKâŻX (insert current price). A break above the 20âday SMA (~NOKâŻY) with volume could signal the start of the recovery phase. Conversely, a breach of the recent low could flag a deeper, possibly structural, weakness.