Hold Rating Maintained Amid Strategic Uncertainty and Gradual, Non-Transformational Earnings Outlook

Analyst Martin Comtesse of Jefferies maintained a Hold rating on Wacker Neuson, retaining the price target of €21.00.

Martin Comtesse has given his Hold rating due to a combination of factors tied to both strategic uncertainty and only moderate operating momentum. With the termination of advanced discussions with Doosan Bobcat over a potential majority stake sale and takeover, the prospect of a transformational M&A event has faded in the near term, shifting investor attention back to fundamentals. Given that this is the second failed attempt within a year to explore a change of control, he acknowledges the possibility of renewed sale efforts by the founding families, but does not base his recommendation on that scenario.

At the operational level, he anticipates no meaningful uplift in sentiment, especially after a pronounced drop in US orders in the third quarter, and therefore projects fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 sales broadly in line with management’s targets rather than materially above them. His margin expectations are cautious, with EBIT seen just below the lower end of guidance, reflecting limited near‑term earnings leverage. While he builds in a modest revenue recovery and around a 100-basis-point margin enhancement in 2026, these improvements are gradual rather than transformative. Additionally, any significant boost from German infrastructure spending is only expected from the second half of 2026 onward, reinforcing a balanced risk–reward profile that supports a Hold rather than a more decisive Buy or Sell stance.