Dusseldorf. In the first half of the year, the 40 DAX companies increased their net profits by 13.5 percent to 68.3 billion euros compared to the previous year. Record profits are expected for the year as a whole.
Shareholders will benefit from this, as many companies are likely to increase their dividends. According to Handelsblatt research, forecasts for the next distribution have increased by more than ten percent for three of the 40 DAX companies since the beginning of the year, and for two by more than 20 percent.
For these three unusual DAX companies, it's worth more than just looking at the dividends - and not just because of the record profits that are looming in 2026.
Commerzbank share: valuation falls despite sharply rising prices
Since the beginning of the year, analysts have increased their dividend forecasts for the third largest German financial institution - after Deutsche Bank and DZ Bank - by an average of 23 percent. This is shown by data from the financial specialist Bloomberg, which brings together the analyzes and estimates of all specialist analysts.
The current forecast is 1.59 euros per share, which Commerzbank could distribute to all shareholders after the next general meeting on May 19, 2027. This spring there was 1.10 euros. It would be the fifth increase in a row after there had been no dividends for shareholders for a long time as a result of the banking and financial crisis.
The main growth driver was the securities business. Commerzbank also collected more fees for supporting bond issues.
After a net profit of almost 900 million euros in the second quarter and 1.8 billion euros in the first half of the year, several analyst firms increased their price targets.
Eleven out of 19 experts currently recommend buying the stock, two recommend selling it. At the beginning of the year the ratio was significantly worse with eight buy, nine hold and three sell recommendations. Since then, the price has risen by a further 17 percent, after the shares had already more than tripled in the previous two years.
For the year as a whole, analysts are forecasting an average net profit of just under 3.5 billion euros. That would be more than ever before in the institute's 156-year history.
Strongly rising profits make the stock cheaper than the long-term average despite rising share prices. The entire bank and, broken down, each individual share currently cost 11.9 times the profit. The basis for this price-earnings ratio (P/E ratio) is the average net profit forecast by analysts for the next four quarters. This means that the share price is 25 percent lower than the ten-year average.
However, both valuations and the rapidly increasing dividend probably only play a minor role at Commerzbank and for its price prospects. The focus is on the takeover battle with the major Italian bank Unicredit. This entails risks and opportunities at the same time.
After purchasing several shares, Unicredit now holds almost 50 percent of all Commerzbank shares.
In order to take over additional shares, Unicredit could make an offer to the independent shareholders that is above the current price. Alternatively, purchases on the stock exchange are possible, which should drive the price further up.
For a long time, Commerzbank and the federal government had opposed a takeover. With a share of voting rights of 12.7 percent, the federal government is the second largest shareholder. His participation goes back to the state rescue of Commerzbank in the wake of the 2008/09 financial market crisis.
The resistance has now given way to constructive dialogue. Unicredit boss Andrea Orcel has suggested that Commerzbank remain independent for another two years before it is merged with Munich subsidiary Hypovereinsbank. Unicredit took over this in 2005.
During these two years, according to Orcel's ideas, Commerzbank should save 7,000 of 40,000 jobs, invest more and increase provisions for risks. This would be at the expense of profits and therefore also the dividend, which could limit the price opportunities.
Commerzbank boss Bettina Orlopp, on the other hand, wants to make the takeover as expensive as possible for the Italians. The aim of buying back own shares for a further 1.2 billion euros is to reduce the supply of freely tradable shares and thus drive the price further up.
Siemens Energy shares: best analysts’ vote
The specialist analysts have raised their dividend forecast for the energy technology group by an average of 22 percent. This is currently 1.97 euros per share for the distribution immediately after the general meeting on February 25th. There were 70 cents this year. It would be the second increase in a row.
In the third quarter, which ended in June, Siemens Energy achieved record sales, profit and profitability. The order backlog reached a record 162 billion euros at the end of June. The wind power division with its Spanish subsidiary Gamesa, which had accumulated billions in losses in recent years, posted profits in the last quarter for the first time since 2022.
The growth drivers are the gas turbine and service business as well as the business with technologies for power grids. In the first nine months, net profit rose by 91 percent to 2.8 billion euros compared to the same period last year. For the year as a whole, analysts are forecasting on average a record net profit of 3.8 billion euros, after 1.4 billion euros in the previous year.
In the past twelve months, the share price has risen by a good 40 percent. The effect of rising prices coupled with even greater increases in corporate profits makes the stock cheaper than before. At 23.7, the P/E ratio is 28 percent below its own average. However, the share has only been listed on the stock exchange since September 2020.
The group, which will rename itself Omterra, benefits from the growing need for electricity, data centers and the digitalization of industry. According to a forecast by the International Energy Agency (IEA), peak electricity demand will increase by around 40 percent by 2035. This requires many new power plants and power grids.
Business with large technology companies is lucrative. Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft are investing billions of dollars in data centers and need a reliable power supply for this. The former Siemens subsidiary supplies the turbines and often also takes care of the subsequent maintenance and service.
The US market offers potential. The wind, solar and storage industries, which are unpopular with US President Donald Trump and his government, are heading for their strongest year. Last year, more than 50 gigawatts of clean power plant output came online for the first time. Wind and solar supplied a good fifth of US electricity in the first half of the current year and, taken together, have overtaken nuclear power.
25 of a total of 32 specialist analysts who regularly analyze the company recommend buying Siemens Energy shares, only two recommend selling.
Hochtief shares: vulnerable to price setbacks
Dividend estimates for the construction group have risen by ten percent since the beginning of January. The average forecast is currently 9.07 euros per share, which could be distributed after the next general meeting on April 28th. This year investors received 6.60 euros. It would be the fifth increase in a row.
Hochtief builds roads, bridges, tunnels, airports, hospitals and skyscrapers. The companies belonging to Hochtief also build facilities for the energy transition such as solar parks, mining facilities and military infrastructure. The Spanish construction and infrastructure group ACS holds 80 percent of the shares. Only 20 percent is listed on the stock exchange.
The Essen-based company has only been listed in the Dax for a quarter of a year. The share is benefiting from billion-dollar infrastructure programs and defense spending in a number of countries, but above all from the AI boom. In the USA, the group builds data center buildings for large tech companies, including the largest data center of Facebook parent company Meta. Orders for data centers have more than doubled within a year
After a net profit of 902 million euros last year, Hochtief is expected to earn more than a billion euros for the first time in 2026. Analysts are forecasting an average of just under 1.1 billion euros. The share price has quadrupled in the past three years and is up 65 percent in the past twelve months.
This effect of increasing profits and a much higher price increase makes the share expensive with a P/E ratio of 25.7 and therefore vulnerable to setbacks. The ten-year average is a good 40 percent lower. This is also why many analysts are skeptical. Only two out of a total of ten specialist analysts still recommend buying the share at this price level.
