Trains: Margin shrinkage: profit warning causes Alstom shares to collapse by 28 percent

New York. Despite full order books, the French train manufacturer Alstom has to lower its forecast for the second time this year.

For the current financial year, the group now only expects an adjusted operating margin of around one percent; it had previously forecast 6.5 percent. The company announced this on Monday. The main problem is the “Coradia Max” series, which is also to be used in Germany.

When it comes to free cash flow, Alstom now expects an outflow of 1.5 billion euros instead of an inflow. The company now estimates the production volume for the current financial year to be around 4,000 vehicles; previously 4,400 to 4,500 were planned.

At the same time, however, the group's order books are full. In the first half of the 2026/27 financial year, Alstom recorded an order intake of 11.0 billion euros, compared to 10.5 billion euros in the corresponding period last year.

Investors on the stock market reacted clearly to the announcements. Alstom shares fell by more than 28 percent on Monday morning and were at their lowest level in the last 52 weeks.