Wienerberger's Interim Chief Faces Twin Test: Rebuilding Investor Trust While Housing Slump Bites
Published on 09/24/2026 at 15:10 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Wienerberger has handed the reins of its capital-markets communications to Claus Ehrenbeck, who stepped in as Senior Vice President Investor Relations on 15 September, succeeding Therese Jandér. The appointment lands at a delicate moment for the Austrian building-materials group, which is navigating a broad leadership reshuffle and a punishing stretch for its core residential construction markets.
At the top of the company, Gerhard Hanke is running the business as Interim CEO. A long-serving insider, Hanke previously spent many years as finance chief and most recently oversaw the Central and Eastern Europe region on the board. He took operational control roughly a month ago after long-time chief executive Heimo Scheuch stepped down for health reasons — a period during which the share price has shed 12.2%.
The dual overhaul of management and investor relations is intended to steady the ship through a demanding stretch. For the newly assembled leadership team, the priority is clear: shore up confidence among shareholders after a series of business setbacks.
First-Half Earnings Under Pressure
The interim numbers laid bare the difficult trading environment. Revenue for the first six months of 2026 reached EUR 2,434 million, an increase on the prior-year period. Operating EBITDA, however, fell to EUR 326 million, translating into an operating margin of 13.4% for the half.
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The bottom line told a starker story. Net income after tax came in at zero million euros, a sharp reversal from the EUR 106 million net profit booked in the same period a year earlier. Weak new-build residential activity across the key markets of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom emerged as the principal drag.
Those pressures prompted the group to trim its full-year operating EBITDA guidance to roughly EUR 700 million about a month ago — a revision that has since knocked 10.3% off the stock. Management is holding to that approximately EUR 700 million target for the full year 2026, while continuing to characterise its infrastructure and renovation markets as stable to flat.
Acquisitions Proceed Despite Headwinds
Wienerberger pressed ahead with its strategic bolt-ons even as the cycle turned. During the second quarter the company completed the acquisitions of Italy's Italcer Group and Sweden's NEWS Group, moves aimed at broadening its offering in key European markets.
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Shifts in the Shareholder Base
Changes in the ownership register have added another layer of uncertainty. US investment firm Fidelity had built up its stake about two weeks ago, after which the stock lost 7.7%. On 8 September, FMR reported a reduction in voting rights to 6.29%, down from 6.55% previously.
Caution among investors remains palpable. Wienerberger shares are trading at EUR 17.34 and have lost 43% since the start of the year. With the revised annual targets now in place, the new leadership's task is to defend them in a sector that shows little sign of easing.
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