The auto supplier ZF doubled its loss last year. The loss for 2025 rose to 2.1 billion euros, according to the company Friedrichshafen
on Lake Constance. As early as 2024, the company lost just over a billion euros.
The company primarily cites the restructuring of the group as the reason. “The write-offs of unprofitable projects have a one-off effect on our balance sheet for 2025,” said ZF boss Mathias Miedreich. “But in this way we are taking stones out of our backpack for advancement in the coming years.”
The ZF Group was able to generate 38.8 billion euros in revenue last year. This is a decrease of around six percent or 2.6 billion euros compared to the previous year. “We don’t see any significant recovery in demand,” said CFO Michael Frick. It is important to survive in a situation without significant market growth.
EBIT increased, but debts still high
ZF has made operational progress. The adjusted operating result (EBIT) rose from around 1.47 billion euros to around 1.75 billion euros. Nevertheless, the group remains heavily indebted. ZF reduced its financial liabilities by 250 million euros last year. However, there remains net debt of 10.2 billion euros.
In addition, the equity ratio fell by more than five percentage points to 13.3 percent in 2025. The equity ratio is one of the key indicators of a company’s financial stability.
Cuts up to 14,000 jobs
ZF does not really expect the situation to improve in the current financial year. If exchange rates remain stable, the group expects sales of over 38 billion euros for 2026. “We will work our way back to profitability step by step,” said CEO Miedreich.
In the coming years, ZF plans to cut up to 14,000 jobs in Germany. According to the announcement, the group employed 153,153 people worldwide at the end of 2025 – around five percent fewer than in the previous year. In Germany, the number of employees also fell nominally by around five percent to just over 49,000. This means that ZF is on track to cut jobs.
ZF is one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers. The group is 93.8 percent owned by the Zeppelin Foundation, which is led by the mayor of the city of Friedrichshafen. Like many others, the company is suffering from the weak economy and low demand – especially after electric cars.