Stadler Rail more than doubles operating profit

Stadler Rail more than doubled its operating profit in the first half of 2026 as revenue rose 40 percent to 2 billion Swiss francs, ORF reported on Wednesday.

The eastern Swiss train manufacturer said operating profit, or EBIT, increased to 79.5 million Swiss francs from 36.9 million a year earlier. Its operating margin improved to 4 percent from 2.6 percent.

Revenue growth was driven mainly by the delivery of numerous vehicles during the first half of 2026 and high production output in the previous year. The strong Swiss franc reduced revenue by 30 million Swiss francs.

Net profit rose only slightly, to 31.2 million Swiss francs from 30.9 million. Stadler attributed the smaller increase to the absence of a one off positive currency effect worth about 20 million Swiss francs that had boosted the previous period.

The company said the effects of the severe flooding in 2024 would continue to affect costs and vehicle delivery delays until 2027. The flooding disrupted production at Stadler plants and key suppliers in Valais, Spain and Austria, with the plant in Valencia particularly badly affected.

Stadler said an improvement programme had largely stabilised supply chains, adjusted production processes and added new suppliers.

New orders rose to 2.7 billion Swiss francs, 1 billion more than in the first half of the previous year. The order backlog reached a record 33.3 billion Swiss francs.

Stadler said it had exceeded analysts expectations for orders, revenue, EBIT and operating margin by a wide margin. Net profit was significantly below their forecasts.

The company maintained its targets for 2026, including revenue of well over 5 billion Swiss francs and an EBIT margin above 5 percent. It expects to invest about 250 million Swiss francs during the year.

Stadler has a large production plant in St Margrethen, a town near the border with Höchst, where many people from Vorarlberg also work. The company also produces trains for Austrian Federal Railways.