Sales fell slightly to EUR73.2 million, compared with EUR77.5 million at the same time last year. Stable operating margins, with a profit before tax and interest of EUR15.5 million, but no spike in orders in relation to the painful Ukrainian situation: that's what we'll remember.

Cash generation was negative for the quarter, impacted by working capital requirements and the investment program at the Oberndorf production site. The situation should improve in the second half of the year.

Over the ten-year period from 2012 to 2022, H&K has delivered only modest sales growth - from EUR203 million to EUR305 million - and very uneven operating profits. In fact, management over the period has been entirely focused on reducing debt, which was problematic at the time and has now returned to a more manageable level.

Earnings capacity is modest, averaging around EUR15 million a year over the last five years. This is a far cry from the financial performance of US-listed arms manufacturers Smith & Wesson and Ruger, discussed a few months ago in these columns.

In view of these fundamentals, despite the strategic nature of its business and its elitist brand image - like, incidentally, its European rivals Beretta, Steyr and FN Herstal, all privately-owned - it's hard to justify a valuation of EUR3.5 billion. After all, apart from episodes of folly, the value of an asset is the sum of the cash flows it will be able to generate for its owners, minus the cost of capital required by the latter.

Now that the company's financial situation has been restored to health, it is possible that H&K will soon be announcing the introduction of a dividend. This is most likely what the current share price "prices". It is therefore safe to assume that any disappointment in this respect would be very unwelcome, and this is something to keep an eye on.

H&K is controlled by two very discreet shareholders: the Luxembourg-based Compagnie de Développement de l'Eau and the Malta-based investment trust Alter Dodus. For the record, Compagnie de Développement de l'Eau is owned by Nicolas Walewski, direct heir to Napoleon Bonaparte - with whom he bears an uncanny physical resemblance!