|
Nordic Group’s 1H2026 results give investors several reasons to pay attention. For the six months ended June 2026, Nordic’s revenue rose just 3% year on year to S$87.2 million. Nordic’s gross margin improved from 22.6% to 23.6%, while net profit margin expanded more sharply from 9.8% to 11.5%. The company said the improvement was supported by higher revenue, lower selling-related expenses and substantially lower finance costs. Two loan facilities were fully repaid earlier this year, while foreign-exchange losses also narrowed. |
| Recurring business continues to deliver |
Nordic has two main engines: project services and maintenance services.
Project revenue rose 2% to S$45.4 million, while maintenance revenue increased 4% to S$41.9 million, a steady recurring revenue base.
That recurring component dampens volatile results from large one-off projects.
Nordic’s maintenance business is also the more profitable of the two segments. Maintenance adjusted EBITDA reached almost S$8.0 million in 1H2026, compared with S$6.3 million for project services.
Nordic’s model sees project work eventually creating more maintenance opportunities. The company says it is positioned to secure “follow-on lifecycle maintenance contracts upon project completion.”
| Record S$254 m order book |
Perhaps the strongest number in the 1H2026 announcement is the order book.
At end-June, Nordic had a record S$254.3 million order book, up sharply from S$201.9 million at end-2025.
It consists of S$111.3 million of project work and S$143.0 million of maintenance work.
Interestingly, virtually all the order-book acceleration came from projects.
The project order book rose from S$66.0 million at end-2025 to S$111.3 million, while maintenance orders increased modestly from S$135.9 million to S$143.0 million.
Executive Chairman Chang Yeh Hong. File photoNordic's executive chairman, Chang Yeh Hong, said defence and fuel-tank projects have a clearer path to maintenance contracts.
The marine business is also naturally recurring: once Nordic supplies systems to a vessel, customers typically return for replacement/MRO work.
For projects where maintenance follows the construction phase, Mr Chang said the maintenance contract typically kicks in 12 to 18 months after the defects-liability period.
| Several industries contribute to the opportunity |
Nordic is about four major markets: marine, petrochemical and infrastructure, semiconductors, and defence.
Its semiconductor exposure is especially interesting given the expansion of wafer-fabrication and advanced-packaging capacity in Asia.
Nordic provides cleanroom, air and water engineering, precision engineering and structural engineering services, and established operations in Thailand and India in 2025.
Marine is another potential tailwind, while Nordic’s Starburst and Avon businesses provide exposure to defence infrastructure.
| Cash is building—and dividends are growing |
Nordic’s cash generation is healthy: Operating cash flow was S$11.4 million, helping net cash more than double from S$4.1 million at end-2025 to S$10.2 million at June 2026.
But management revealed that by 31 July, it had already risen to S$17.3m, helped by significant July collections.
Shareholders are sharing in the improvement.
Nordic raised its interim dividend by 21% to 1.0008 cents per share, matching the PATMI growth, because Nordic maintained its 40% payout ratio.
Mr Chang said if 3Q and 4Q results keep “moving northwards”, there is a good chance of a special dividend with the year-end results.
Management said its defence sales pipeline is around S$173m, a large portion of which could be won within the next 12 months. For perspective, Nordic generated only S$153m revenue for all of FY25. Nordic's headline revenue growth of 3% looks modest, but beneath it are higher margins, 21% profit growth, stronger cash generation, rising dividends and a record order book. |
→ See the Powerpoint deck here
