HHLA share

DAX down at year-end

During 2022, the stock markets were mainly influenced by geopolitical crises as well as concerns about interest rates and inflation. There were significant global losses on the stock markets and the German benchmark index DAX had its worst run in four years. These developments were primarily attributable to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which triggered price spikes for energy and drove inflation in Germany to a record high. Furthermore, global value chains are still experiencing disruptions: coronavirus infections, supply issues, material bottlenecks and labour shortages have all affected companies’ productivity and pushed prices up. In view of these developments, the central banks took action and made a succession of significant interest rate hikes following an extended period of monetary easing. This fuelled concerns of a recession and had a dampening effect on the stock market. In late September, the German DAX reached a year-low of under 12,000 points, having started the year well above 16,000 points. At year-end, the German stock market barometer consolidated at just under 14,000 points and closed on 30 December 2022 with a year-on-year loss of 12.3 %. In 2021, the DAX had grown by 15.8 %. The SDAX also recorded double-digit losses, down by 27.3 % on the previous year.

HHLA share under pressure on several fronts

The HHLA share started the year at a high of € 21.06 but was unable to escape the effects of the depressed market environment. The Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February led to an immediate drop in the share price. The reasons for this were shareholder concerns about HHLA’s container terminal in the Ukrainian port of Odessa, as well as the presumed high proportion of Russian throughput volumes handled by HHLA which would be affected by tougher EU sanctions against Russia. In early March, an analyst assessment of the potential negative impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on HHLA’s business against the backdrop of a highly uncertain market environment triggered a sharp fall in the share price. The proactive publication of a company statement was only partially successful in averting a massive drop in the share price. In addition, the share price was hampered by rising inflation. In June, strikes related to ongoing collective bargaining negotiations for the German seaports spread uncertainty among investors. In early October, the share drew attention due to the critical – and not always entirely objective – debate regarding the minority shareholding of COSCO Shipping Port Limited (CSPL) in the operating company of the Hamburg Container Terminal Tollerort (CTT). During this time, the share registered a year-low of € 10.98. The compromise with the German government found in late October in the form of investment protection agreements was welcomed by the capital market. The share recovered slightly in an increasingly positive market environment but was unable to regain the ground it had lost since the start of the year. As a result, the HHLA share closed the year on 30 December 2022 with a loss of 42.1 % at € 11.90. For more information on the share price performance and the HHLA share, please visit www.hhla.de/investors.

Share price development 2022

Virtual Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting was once again held as a virtual event on 16 June 2022. The shareholders formally approved the actions of HHLA’s Executive Board and Supervisory Board for the 2021 financial year. The proposal of the Supervisory Board and Executive Board to issue a dividend of € 0.75 per listed class A share (previous year: € 0.45) was also approved. HHLA distributed dividends to its class A shareholders totalling € 54.4 million (previous year: € 32.3 million). The dividend payout ratio of 53 % was therefore at the lower end of the dividend payout range of 50 to 70 % of the annual net profit after minority interests. The dividend was paid out to the shareholders on 21 June 2022. Based on its closing price of € 15.04 on the day of the Annual General Meeting, the HHLA share achieved a dividend yield of 5.0 %.

Dividend proposal for 2022 financial year

Dividend per listed class A share

in € / payout ratio in %

At the Annual General Meeting on 15 June 2023, the HHLA Executive Board and Supervisory Board will propose a dividend of € 0.75 per dividend-entitled class A share.

At € 54.4 million, the payout amount would be unchanged from the previous year. HHLA therefore continues to pursue its dividend policy of distributing between 50 and 70 %, where possible, of the Port Logistics subgroup’s relevant net profit for the year to its shareholders.

Shareholder base still widely spread

Shareholder structure

as of 31.12.2022

HHLA’s shareholder base remained largely stable in 2022. In terms of the listed class A shares, the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg remained the company’s largest shareholder with an unchanged stake of 69.2 %.

As of 31 December 2022, the free float portion amounted to 30.8 % (previous year: 30.8 %). According to the voting rights notifications submitted to HHLA at the end of 2022, no single investor held more than 3 % of the remaining free float shares at this time. Among daily traded shares, ownership remained almost unchanged as of the reporting date. Institutional investors continued to hold the majority of free float shares, accounting for 19.2 % of all shares (previous year: 21.1 %). The proportion of nominal capital held by private investors increased by two percentage points to 11.6 % (previous year: 9.6 %).

Dialogue with capital market maintained

Rapid response times and an open dialogue with financial analysts and investors continued to play a significant role in HHLA’s investor relations activities in 2022, given the volatile industry environment. In order to serve the needs of both institutional and private investors and to maintain its dialogue with investors, HHLA used a wide range of digital formats. In addition, the Chief Financial Officer and IR team attended a total of ten capital market conferences (previous year: nine). The Executive Board provided details on business developments during quarterly conference calls. HHLA also provides a variety of digital channels, including its website, the HTML Annual Report and a dedicated investor portal, to inform potential and current investors about the HHLA share performance.

Institutional investors by region

as of 31.12.2022

With its proactive approach to communications, the Investor Relations department maintains a close dialogue with shareholders and potential investors. In addition to informing interested members of the public, the team also flags up issues of particular relevance to investors within the company. In addition to the progress of the Container segment’s efficiency programme and the automation of the Container Terminal Burchard­kai (CTB), key topics for the capital market in 2022 included the impact of inflation, the potential partnership with container terminals in the German Bight, the stake of COSCO Shipping Ports Limited (CSPL) in Container Terminal Tollerort and the effects of the war in Ukraine.

HHLA share still of interest for analysts

Recommendations by financial analysts

as of 31.12.2022

The number of financial analysts actively covering HHLA’s business development and issuing research reports and recommendations fell slightly to six in the course of the year. As of the reporting date, two analysts recommended buying the share. They emphasised in particular the above-average growth of the Intermodal business and the long-term increase in profitability of the Container segment. Those analysts who recommended holding the share primarily see from low cost flexibility and persistently fierce competition among the North Range ports. In addition, some analysts assume that storage fees, which had risen due to supply chain disruption, is likely to return to normal levels in the Container segment in 2023 due to a weak global economy and lower volume growth.

HHLA attaches great importance to broad and well-informed coverage of its share by financial analysts, as this gives interested investors the opportunity to familiarise themselves with HHLA’s business model and environment on the basis of independent analyses. The Executive Board and Investor Relations therefore remain in close contact with all financial analysts in order to ensure a broad set of opinions.

Sustainability­ reporting and ratings

In addition to classic financial aspects, non-financial or ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) figures play an increasingly important role in evaluating companies on the capital market. As a responsible company, HHLA has been reporting extensively on its non-financial performance since 2011. In order to underline the relevance of non-financial topics for HHLA in its reporting, HHLA is reporting the non-financial statement as part of the Group management report from this year onwards. HHLA's reporting goes beyond the legally required information in the non-financial statement and is essentially based on the internationally recognised reporting standards of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Non-financial reporting

HHLA also champions the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations. Corporate and sustainability strategy

Based on this information, HHLA’s sustainability credentials are regularly evaluated by ESG ratings agencies, such as MSCI, ISS-oekom, S&P Global Ratings ESG, Gaia and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). In the CDP ranking for the 2021 financial year, HHLA achieved a “C” rating. www.hhla.de/en/investors/equity-story/esg-investments