OHB’s Liquidity Overhaul: KKR’s Exit and a €1.2 Billion Convertible Bet Reshape the Space Stock’s Trajectory
03.06.2026 - 16:04:02 | boerse-global.de
KKR’s plan to slash its 29% stake in OHB SE to a single-digit holding is set to quadruple the German space and defence group’s free float from a razor-thin 6% to roughly 26% by the end of June. The move — orchestrated by seven banks, with Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan joined by Berenberg, Commerzbank, Jefferies and UniCredit — does not alter the controlling Fuchs family’s 65% voting rights, but it promises to transform a stock that has been notorious for violent swings on negligible trading volumes.
Those swings have been on full display in recent days. The shares closed at €368.50 on the day of the latest data, down 5.51% in a single session and 17.65% lower over the past seven sessions. The retreat cuts sharply into a blistering rally that had sent the stock up 203.29% year-to-date and 379.82% over 12 months, leaving the current price 46.44% below its 52-week high. The annualised 30-day volatility stands at 136.59% — an extreme reading even by aerospace and defence sector standards.
Technically, the picture remains stretched. The Relative Strength Index sits at 74.0, signalling overbought conditions despite the sell-off, while the share price is still 5.43% above its 50-day moving average and 83.97% above the 200-day line. Analysts see the correction less as a reaction to any single corporate event and more as a brutal revaluation after an extraordinary run that had little room for error.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying OHB SE?
Fundamentally, OHB continues to deliver. First-quarter 2026 total output reached €279.3 million, up 15% year-on-year. Adjusted EBITDA climbed 37% to €27.3 million, while adjusted EBIT hit €16.8 million. Net income rose to €9.94 million from €3.97 million, translating into earnings per share of €0.52 — solid operational progress that provides a counterweight to the chart-driven turbulence.
That progress is underpinned by a record order backlog of €3.35 billion as of 31 March 2026, driven by defence contracts and large satellite constellation programmes. To finance the associated upfront costs, management is seeking shareholder approval at Monday’s annual general meeting to issue convertible or warrant bonds with a total face value of up to €1.2 billion, with an authorisation running through 2031. The size of the request reflects the lumpy, capital-intensive nature of space and defence projects.
The AGM, scheduled for 8 June 2026 and held virtually, will also vote on a dividend proposal of €0.60 per share, payable on 11 June if approved. While the dividend itself is modest given the share price history, the meeting carries extra weight this year as the first formal opportunity for management to address investors after the stock’s wild ride and in the midst of KKR’s phased exit.
In a separate operational development, OHB Sweden — the main contractor for the European Space Agency’s EPS-Sterna small-satellite constellation — placed a €7.6 million order with AAC Clyde Space for power and data management systems covering 21 units, with deliveries scheduled between 2027 and 2029. The constellation is designed to deliver more precise temperature and humidity data for European weather forecasting through 2042. For the stock, the contract is a footnote. The real story remains the interplay between a ballooning free float, a record backlog, and the managerial discipline needed to fund growth without unnerving a newly liquid shareholder base.
Ad
OHB SE Stock: New Analysis - 3 June
Fresh OHB SE information released. What's the impact for investors? Our latest independent report examines recent figures and market trends.
