STO Stock: Dividend Cut Amid Construction Sector Challenges

The STO SE & Co. KGaA has announced plans to significantly reduce its dividend payout for fiscal year 2024, causing a nearly 3% drop in share price to €134.00. The SDAX-listed building materials manufacturer intends to distribute €3.31 per preferred share, a substantial decrease from the previous year's €5.00. While the base dividend remains unchanged at €0.31, the bonus component will be reduced to €3.00, down from €4.69. Common shareholders will receive €3.25 per share, compared to €4.94 last year. These cuts reflect the company's deteriorating financial performance, with projected revenue declining to €1.6 billion from €1.72 billion and expected EBIT falling dramatically to between €50-68 million from €126.5 million in 2023, despite cost-cutting measures. The total dividend distribution will amount to €21.04 million, significantly below last year's €31.90 million.

Uncertain Future Outlook

Anzeige

Sollten Anleger sofort verkaufen? Oder lohnt sich doch der Einstieg bei STO?

In a move that has further unsettled investors, STO's management has decided to discontinue providing medium-term forecasts beyond the one-year horizon, citing volatile economic and political conditions affecting the construction industry. This reverses a previous announcement from July 2024 and underscores the company's difficulty in making reliable projections. Despite the current downturn, STO's stock still maintains a year-to-date gain of over 25%, though its three-year performance shows losses exceeding 30%. The company faces multiple challenges, including China's property crisis, reduced public funding for energy efficiency measures in key European markets, and persistently high procurement costs. The complete audited financial report for 2024, including the outlook for 2025, is scheduled for release on April 30, 2025, pending shareholder approval at the annual meeting set for June 18, 2025.