Siemens’ Record Quarter Collides With Rare Internal Dissent Over Breakup Strategy

The machinery giant’s order book has never been fatter, yet the loudest pushback to its corporate architecture is coming from inside the house. Siemens posted a record €27.9 billion in quarterly orders — up 14 percent on a comparable basis — while its works council chief publicly lambasted the very spinoffs that reshaped the company’s portfolio.

Tobias Bäumler, head of Siemens’ group works council, told Welt am Sonntag that the carve-outs of Siemens Healthineers and Siemens Energy, executed under former CEO Joe Kaeser between 2018 and 2020, were strategic mistakes. Both businesses have flourished independently, he argued, and Siemens would be worth more today had the conglomerate stayed intact. The critique carries an awkward wrinkle: Kaeser now chairs the supervisory board at Siemens Energy — the very entity whose separation Bäumler calls an error.

The dissent, however, stops at the current leadership’s door. Bäumler praised CEO Roland Busch’s ongoing transformation as a paradigm shift toward technology focus, with artificial intelligence and a unified data backbone at its core. He pressed for greater transparency with the workforce during the transition but did not question its direction.

A Forecast Raised on Backlog Momentum

The operational numbers give Busch ample cover. Third-quarter revenue climbed 8 percent on a comparable basis to €20.8 billion, while industrial profit jumped 25 percent to a record €3.5 billion. Digital Industries led the charge, with its margin expanding from 14.5 percent to 18.7 percent, powered by software sales and a 30 percent surge in electronic design automation for chip design.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Siemens?

Management responded by lifting full-year earnings guidance to €11.20–€11.50 per share, up from the previous €10.70–€11.10 range. The confidence rests on a visible foundation: the order backlog stood at roughly €132 billion at the end of June, a fresh high, with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.34. Siemens is taking in far more work than it can process, providing visibility that extends well beyond the current fiscal year.

The structure of the group is also in motion. Siemens said it had definitively resolved tax questions with authorities regarding a further spin-off of Healthineers, in which it holds around 67 percent — a sign that the gradual reorganization of the conglomerate has another chapter to come.

Analysts Move Targets Higher

The market’s response was swift but measured. UBS analyst Andre Kukhnin lifted his price target from €310 to €330 on August 7, maintaining a “Buy” rating and citing better-than-expected profitability in Smart Infrastructure. Bernstein’s Alasdair Leslie followed on August 14, also raising his target to €330 with an “Outperform” call, pointing to robust demand for data center infrastructure and an improved price-cost relationship.

Shares Consolidate Near Peak

The stock closed Friday at €283.70, down a marginal 0.3 percent, but the bigger picture remains firmly positive. The shares have gained 1.1 percent over the week, 4.7 percent over the month, and roughly 19 percent since the start of the year. They sit about 2.6 percent below the 52-week high of €291.25 reached in early August, with a market capitalization of around €218 billion keeping Siemens among the DAX’s heavyweight names. The €300 mark is now within sight — provided the order momentum holds and the internal debate stays contained to the boardroom rather than spilling onto the factory floor.