NORMA Group successfully completes sale of Water Management business

NORMA Group successfully completed the sale of its Water Management business to the US company Advanced Drainage Systems (ADS) as planned. The company also confirms the use of the net cash inflow, which will be implemented through a combination of various measures.

The enterprise value of the transaction amounts to approximately EUR 850 million (USD 1 billion). This value reflects a successful growth phase of the business unit under the ownership of NORMA Group. After taking into account deductions, the net cash inflow amounts to approximately EUR 650 million. Of this amount, approximately EUR 300 million of the proceeds from the sale will be used to reduce debt and an additional amount of approximately EUR 70 million will be retained to strengthen NORMA Group’s core business. As a result, NORMA Group will be almost debt-free and will also have considerable spare liquidity.

Furthermore, the Management Board and Supervisory Board have decided to return a total amount of up to EUR 260 million from the net proceeds of the sale to shareholders through a combination of various measures. Further details can be found in NORMA Group’s ad hoc announcement published today.

Birgit Seeger, CEO of NORMA Group: “The Water Management business has developed very successfully within NORMA Group over more than ten years, despite offering only limited synergies with our core business. With the completion of the sale, we as NewNORMA are taking a decisive step towards becoming an Industrial Powerhouse for connecting solutions, not only by sharpening our focus on our core competencies, but also by having significant funds at our disposal to substantially strengthen our industrial business. Any additional liquidity will be returned to our shareholders in the interest of capital efficiency. A debt-free NORMA Group with a strong balance sheet and a clear strategic goal is ideally positioned to be a reliable partner for our customers, employees and investors, even in economically challenging times.”

Transformation continues apace

In 2026, NORMA Group consequently pursues its transformation into an Industrial Powerhouse for connecting solutions. The focus will be on measures to further increase customer value, improve profitability and sustainably strengthen competitiveness.

As part of the transformation, NORMA Group will focus primarily on the following key measures in the coming months:

• Further streamlining the organization and adjusting costs to the company’s size of NewNORMA: Simplify structures, accelerate decision-making and consistently focus resources on customer value and profitable business areas.
• Optimizing global presence: Consolidation of site capacities in both manufacturing and logistics.
• Strengthening the industrial business: Consistently align development, production, and sales with the requirements of industrial customers, further develop processes for high-growth core industrial segments, and complement these with a strong international sales organization.

In addition, NORMA Group is continuously reviewing the development of existing business areas, the targeted expansion of its portfolio, and the pursuit of additional market opportunities.

With these measures, NORMA Group is well-positioned to permanently improve its operational strength and secure sustainable growth.

Birgit Seeger, CEO of NORMA Group: “NewNORMA unlocks significant potential for us. We are operating more closely aligned, faster and with a sharper focus than ever before. For our customers, this means maximum reliability and solutions precisely tailored to their current and future challenges. At the same time, we are further strengthening the company as an Industrial Powerhouse – through high-performance products, deep technological expertise and innovations that measurably increase our customers’ productivity. This clear focus of NewNORMA also creates attractive prospects for our employees throughout the globe, in an engaging working environment.”

Preliminary operating figures in line with forecast

As part of the work on the preparation of the annual financial statements as of December 31, 2025 of NORMA Group SE, a technical impairment requirement on the carrying amounts of the investments in certain Group companies in the EMEA region (especially in Germany) was identified. The impairment results from an adjusted revenue planning for the financial years 2028 to 2030. The impairment requirement results from a non-cash correction of the carrying amounts and amounts to EUR 102 million in the individual financial statements of NORMA Group SE (HGB). The impairment has no impact on the operating EBIT of the IFRS consolidated financial statements or on the planned return of capital to shareholders. As of today, the company confirms its targets for sales and margin within the forecast communicated in September 2025.

Other dates: Preliminary and final figures and forecast for 2026

Details of the preliminary 2025 financial results will be published as planned on February 17, 2026. NORMA Group will present the audited, final figures for the 2025 financial year with detailed information on business development and the forecast for the current financial year on March 31, 2026.

The Management Board and the Supervisory Board intend to propose the planned capital reduction to the Annual General Meeting, which is currently scheduled for May 21, 2026. Should the preparations required for this purpose not be completed in time for the meeting on May 21, 2026, the date of the Annual General Meeting may also be postponed.