Positive quarterly for Hera, which at Piazza Affari is currently down by 0.44%. The multiservice company closed the first half of 2022 with revenues of € 8,896 million (up 113% compared to the same period of 2021) and beating the estimates of analysts who had forecast revenues of € 8,675 million. The company closed the period with a net debt of € -3,682 million, in line with what was estimated by analysts who had a consensus of € -3,690 million.
In addition, reported EBITDA would be € 543 million, a decrease of 12% compared to the same period last year, but this includes the accounting effect of inventory losses in the gas area. Equita analysts say that the 88 million euro inventory loss is actually of an accounting nature and was generated by the increased storage activity required by the government and the market environment, and will be reabsorbed in the coming months. Equita maintains a “Hold” rating on Hera with a target price of 3.6 euros per share and they note that the debt has worsened as it has risen to € -3,682 million and this is due to the effects of commodity pricing, payment extensions and increased gas storage. According to Equita, the company could announce further M&A deals in the coming weeks.