Gerresheimer Balances US Expansion With €197M Impairment Scandal as Creditors Extend Lifeline
12.06.2026 - 13:25:49 | boerse-global.de
Just outside Atlanta, Gerresheimer has quietly brought two fully automated pallet storage systems online at its Peachtree City plant. The 13-metre-high warehouses, each holding 1,104 pallets, are part of a $180 million expansion launched last year that added nearly 17,900 square metres of cleanroom space and more than 400 jobs. While the company touts end-to-end traceability for inhalers, autoinjectors and infusion components, the real story playing out in the boardroom is far less surgical.
A €197 million hole looms in the balance sheet. The BaFin is investigating whether the Advanced Technologies segment should have taken impairment charges of that size. Leasing liabilities of around €65 million and capitalised development costs are also under the regulator’s microscope. The result is a blackout for institutional investors: until a signed audit opinion lands, the stock is effectively uninvestable for many funds.
The DSW shareholder protection group has commissioned a legal opinion on former CEO Dietmar Siemssen and ex-CFO Bernd Metzner, focusing on goodwill valued at €676 million. DSW chief Marc Tüngler warned that the more concrete the claims become, the more likely it is a litigation funder will step in. Meanwhile, audit watchdog APAS has opened professional misconduct proceedings against KPMG, which issued an unqualified opinion for the 2024 accounts – shortly after taking over from Deloitte. The core issue: systematic IFRS violations tied to bill-and-hold transactions that inflated revenue by €35 million and adjusted EBITDA by €24 million.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Gerresheimer?
Gerresheimer bought itself critical breathing room on the financing side. Holders of €870 million in Schuldschein loans voted by 96% in favour of extending the deadline for presenting audited financial statements to the end of September 2026. Key leverage covenants have been suspended in the meantime. The company still plans to release the certified 2024 annual report in June, which will provide the first reliable data since the crisis erupted.
To shore up cash, the US subsidiary Centor – a drug-packaging unit carried at €292 million on the books – has been put up for sale. Morgan Stanley is running the process, and management reports a “double-digit number” of interested parties. A deal is expected before year-end. Yet Centor generates above-average margins, so divesting it will further pressure profitability that is already dented. Despite that, the board is sticking to its 2026 targets: revenue of €2.3–2.4 billion, an adjusted EBITDA margin of 18–19%, and moderately positive free cash flow – all conditional on a favourable BaFin outcome.
On the trading floor, the stock closed at €25.58, down 46% over twelve months and still just below its 200-day moving average of €25.73. It has recovered sharply from a 52-week low of €14.90 but remains under technical pressure after dropping out of the SDAX. Short sellers hold 11% of the shares, though early players like Arrowstreet Capital are starting to trim positions. The decisive catalyst now is the June audit report – the make-or-break moment for a company trying to build new factories while digging out from an accounting hole.
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Gerresheimer Stock: New Analysis - 12 June
Fresh Gerresheimer information released. What's the impact for investors? Our latest independent report examines recent figures and market trends.
