30.04.2026

Strong start for Manitou

French telehandler and aerial lift manufacturer Manitou has reported a sharp improvement in first quarter revenues and order intake, compared to this time last year, with total revenues increasing eight percent to €648 million.

Order intake for new equipment continued its upward trend, rising from €574 million last year to 631 million this year, a 9.9 percent increase.
The order book/backlog at the end of March was €1.21 billion, +3.6% on the same point last year.

Sales by geographic region

Europe €553 million +12.5%
North America €100 million -14.2%
South/Central America & Asia Pacific €72 million -12.9%
Total €648 million +8%

The company says that Europe is showing very strong growth, with the momentum driven by significant volume improvements in telehandlers, accompanied by an increase in market share.

“The decline in North America, on the other hand, reflects a toughening of the commercial environment, marked by the impact of customs duties and unfavourable foreign exchange effects.”

The rest of the world’s performance is, it says, “impacted by a market downturn and increased competitive pressure.”

Full year Outlook
The company is now expecting full year revenues to come in around five percent higher in 2026, which means around €2.7 billion.

Chief executive Michel Denis said: "The group achieved a very good first quarter, with the excellent momentum observed driven by our European markets, particularly with rental companies. On the commercial front, our business remains very well-oriented with order intakes amounting to nearly €631 million over the quarter, an increase of 9.9% compared to the first quarter of 2025.”

“At the same time, we are pursuing the execution of our ‘Lift’ strategic roadmap and continuing the electrification of our ranges with the launch of several construction and agricultural telehandlers and the creation of a joint venture with Hangcha dedicated to the production of lithium-ion batteries.”

"Based on the momentum of the first quarter and a robust order book, the group expects revenue growth for the 2026 fiscal year to be approximately 5% compared to 2025. The recurring operating profit is anticipated to reach around 5% of revenue. These outlooks are impacted by higher customs duties, unfavourable trends in raw material prices, and exchange rate fluctuations. Nevertheless, achieving these targets remains subject to a volatile environment, economic uncertainty, geopolitical shifts, and unstable commodity prices, all of which limit visibility on the annual net result.”

Vertikal Comment

This is a very positive start for Manitou and a good final quarter for Michel Dennis, who will step down at the end of June, after serving three terms of office and 12 years in the role.
One question arising out of these numbers is what happened? Is it down to a pickup in the telehandler markets where Manitou is strong, or has it been taking market share from others? It could also be due to sales of larger machines than a year ago or something else.

We hope to find out when it publishes its financial results for the quarter in a few weeks time.
In the meantime, it is good to report on some positive financial results in these uncertain times.