German packaging and bottling machine firm Krones AG on Friday reported a 3.6% rise in first-quarter profits.
Profits rose to €65.8 million ($70.7 million) from last year's €63.5 million, with earnings per share improving to €2.08 from €2.01.
Earnings before tax (EBT) climbed by 7.2% year-over-year to €89.0 million.
Revenue for the first quarter increased about 4.0% to €1.25 billion from €1.20 billion in the previous year.
There were fewer working days in the reporting period than in the prior-year quarter.
In addition, Krones has consolidated the revenue of Netstal Maschinen AG, which it acquired on March 28, 2024.
At the end of March 2024, the company had an order backlog totalling €4.36 billion. The order backlog thus showed an increase of 15.3% on the prior-year figure.
Looking ahead for 2024, the company still expects a revenue growth of 9% to 13% with an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortizations (EBITDA) margin of 9.8% to 10.3%.
