Thyssenkrupp's Hot Strip Mill Springs Back to Life as June Board Weighs Spinoff of €11.4B Division
04.06.2026 - 04:12:30 | boerse-global.de
Thyssenkrupp enters a defining week with two powerful narratives converging: the restart of a key steel production line after an eight-month shutdown and a supervisory board decision that could reshape the conglomerate's portfolio. The industrial group's Warmbandwerk 4 in Duisburg has kicked off trial operations following a fire last October, while on 16 June the board will deliberate the fate of the Materials Services division, which generated roughly €11.4 billion in revenue in 2025.
The restart of the hot strip mill is more than symbolic. The facility produces hot-rolled flat steel critical for automotive and machinery customers, and its return brings vital capacity back online. The continuous caster had already resumed in December. Together, the two milestones suggest Thyssenkrupp’s steel operations are gradually healing from the production disruptions that weighed on recent quarters.
The supervisory board will on that same 16 June meeting consider three paths for Materials Services — a straight sale, a spin-off, or an initial public offering. The division's sales heft makes it a significant piece of the restructuring puzzle, and whichever route is chosen will set the strategic tone for the wider group.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Thyssenkrupp?
Against that backdrop, one of the world's largest asset managers has trimmed its exposure. BlackRock disclosed on 3 June that its voting-rights stake had slipped from 5.70% to 5.51%, with direct shareholding falling from 5.26% to 5.08% and instruments accounting for 0.43%. The threshold was breached on 29 May, triggered by a combination of share purchases and sales as well as a voluntary group notification at a subsidiary level. Such filings do not indicate a strategic verdict on the stock, but they also offer no vote of confidence.
Thyssenkrupp shares traded at €11.66 on the day of the announcement, down 0.26% from the previous session. Year-to-date the stock has gained roughly 20.6%, a solid recovery from the 52-week low of €7.10. Still, the equity trades about 12% below the 52-week high of €13.24 touched last October, suggesting the market is waiting for clearer evidence that the operational momentum is sustainable.
The second-quarter results for fiscal 2025/2026 paint a mixed picture. Order intake jumped to €10.6 billion, a €2.6 billion improvement on the prior year, but revenue slipped 2% to €8.38 billion. Adjusted EBIT came in at €198 million, while adjusted EBITDA halved to €245 million. The net loss stood at a wafer-thin €11 million. Management has maintained its full-year guidance: adjusted EBIT between €500 million and €900 million, free cash flow before M&A in a range of minus €600 million to minus €300 million, and a net result between minus €800 million and minus €400 million.
The next major checkpoint arrives on 13 August, when Thyssenkrupp publishes its nine-month report. By then the market will know whether the hot strip mill's trial run has translated into reliable output and, more crucially, what the supervisory board decided about Materials Services. The convergence of operational recovery and portfolio clarity could determine whether the stock finally closes the gap to its autumn highs.
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